Challenger
by Rougemage Nick
Summary: Team JNAS is feeling stronger than ever. But on a field trip in the Forever Fall, the team will face something that will test the limits of their strength. Even now, even together, how will they overcome this great challenge...
1. Chapter 1 The Forever Fall Encounter

It had been four days since Jay could stand from his wheelchair, and since then, it seemed that everything had been going right for the team. With Sasha speaking again, everyone was in high spirits, and with Jay back as co-team leader off of suspension, things moved smoothly for them all. Jay was terrific with planning, and with him no longer being at war with Sasha, the whole team felt a sense of togetherness that helped them everyday. Jay began assisting with homework after proving his earlier statement of the work being easy to be true. The whole team was shocked that Jay never had to try to do well. Nick and Jay worked well in combat classes over that time, quickly being able to pick up on signals and motions. Anna and Sasha had practiced with eachother to do the same, with this, the entire team gained a unity. After the four days, it was announced that they'd be taking their first trip into the Forever Fall to collect sap. Jay wondered what the purpose of such a pointless activity was, but it was a request from a professor at the school, so he reluctantly agreed to it. On the bright side, they were told that they could keep any extras they brought back with them. The whole team got their stuff ready for the trip the night before, and they were told to bring their combat clothes, as this would be a trip into Grimm territory. Nick couldn't wait, and all night, joked that he'd go back that day for the head of the Manticore. Jay rolled his eyes and didn't think about it, instead just going to sleep. The next morning he woke himself up at the same time Nick would get up, so they could be ready in what he described as a "timely fashion." After an hour of preparing, they left to go meet the other first years at the path out to the Forever Fall on the far side of the school. They all stood impatiently as Ms. Goodwitch explained the protocol of these trips, and waited for everyone who was going to arrive. When finally Ms. Goodwitch counted everyone as present, they set off towards the Forever Fall. As they left, a couple of school officials handed out boxes filled with the jars they'd be using for sap. When they arrived at the Forever Fall border, they found two more Professors waiting. They were to be split into groups and go with one of the three professors. Team JNAS was told to go with Professor Oobleck, who still carried a mug of coffee in his hands, and appeared to have also brought a thermos. The whole team could venture a guess as to what it contained...He lead them off into the forest with two other teams, and Anna recognized the girl with the large rabbit ears...Cardin had picked on her constantly, and it's very lucky Sasha hadn't been there at those times. But the other team, None of them really knew. They walked through the woods, until Oobleck had picked a spot. He started rambling at high speeds about staying with your partners and don't run off and probably a bunch of other stuff they couldn't even make out through the frequent sips of coffee and the odd dashing this way and that.

Jay took two of the jars and one of the sap spiles, and with Nick, who'd taken four jars, walked over to one of the trees. Sasha and Anna did the same, and took four jars with them. He handed Nick the spile, and without a word, Nick drove it into the tree. These types of trees were full of a watery sweet sap that didn't take long to flow from the spile. Jay held one of the jars under the spile. After about 10 minutes, they'd filled all the jars. Sasha and Anna walked over as they were filling the last.

"I feel like we should get more of this..." Anna said, staring at the inside of one of her jars.

"Well this sap can be processed quite easily...and I know a few recipes for preserves and syrup...If we got enough, we could make quite a few great desserts with this." Jay spoke, smiling at the sap they'd collected.

Nick rolled his eyes, "Of course you can cook. How. Why." He said, a little bothered.

"Oh, well-"

Sasha interrupted him as he started, "Yes yes, you learned to cook 'in your travels,' we know..." she said, putting 'in your travels' in air quotes.

Jay frowned, "You jealous?" He said simply. Sasha also rolled her eyes. Then he looked over at Nick, who'd started to walk around at random. Jay followed after him, "Nick, where are you going?"

Nick looked back at him as he walked, "Nowhere in particular. Sometimes I do that. Is that a problem?" Jay didn't respond. Anna and Sasha followed after them. Nick wasn't an idiot, and didn't intend to go very far from the group. He walked in a large circle around the trees, returning to the spot they started in. Jay stopped and stood against one of the trees. Nick continued walking though. Anna stopped and looked back at him. He didn't look up, and after a moment's consideration, she stopped and decided to stay back with him, since they had been told to stay in teams. She walked over and leaned on the tree next to him. Jay didn't look at her, and didn't seem to notice she was standing there.

After a moment, he suddenly spoke up to her, and she nearly fell over, "Why didn't you go walk around with Nick and Sasha? We've got a while to wait our here, it'd be best if you walked around..."

She composed herself before speaking, "Oh...Um...We were told to stay in groups, so I thought I should stay back so that we wouldn't get in trouble..."

"I know saying it won't change it, but you're oddly shy, aren't you..." Anna stuttered a moment. "That answers that, I suppose. You don't have a reason to be. We're teammates, and we should treat eachother as such. You're our friend here. So perhaps you should consider being less reserved..." Jay told her, matter-of-factly. Anna considered this a moment. She knew he was right, and that she should be more out-going, especially with her teammates.

Nick and Sasha kept walking. Sasha turned around and noticed Anna had gone back. So she turned and caught up with Nick.

"I think Anna went back to stay with Jay..."

Nick snickered, "Is that so?" Then he stopped, and his smile vanished as he realized this left him and Sasha alone. Nick kept walking, trying not to make this too unbearable. He couldn't think of anything to say. Sasha just walked along, seeming to be interested in the world around them. Nick tried to speak up, "So...This place sure is pretty...It's a shame that it's full of deadly soulless monsters...It'd be a great place for a picnic..." He stuttered the words, worrying she'd think something weird about him.

Sasha nodded, "Yeah...Then again, I think I'd be happy just having a picnic anyway...Those creatures don't bother me...I'd just drop them and continue my meal...Ya' know?" Sasha sounded confident in her abilities to do so.

Nick smiled inside, "Sounds good to me...I think it'd be nicer to just go out and kill some things...The picnic is fine and all, but only after I got tired of cutting off heads..." He finished.

Nick was trying to mirror Sasha's confidence, but it didn't sound to him like it was working. Sasha looked over at him, and he tried his best to stay composed, "That **does **sound pretty good...Hm. You're a pretty good team-leader. I'd say you were better than Jay...Leading to much with his head...He doesn't appear to have any comprehension of emotions...Nothing but thought, that one. You on the other hand, you lead with your instinct. More often than not, the first instinct we have is the right one. You also don't stick to routine, which is good...Who wants to spend their life, day after day doing the same exact thing...That sounds like an awful existence..." Sasha finished her speech, and Nick couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of pride.

He could only mutter for a moment before speaking up, "Thanks...That's real nice to hear. Not...Not many people have that kind of opinion of me...They see this arm of mine and it kinda...It makes them see me as something less. They think of it as something to pity...'That poor guy...He must have been in a terrible accident...He must have a difficult life...' But no...The way I see it, I've got things pretty good." Nick said. For some reason, even though he felt like this was awkward, he felt things weren't going terribly. They continued walking for a minute or two in silence, not feeling like they needed to say much. But then, they came back to the tree where Anna and Jay should have been...And they were gone.

* * *

Nick and Sasha ran over to the group. They asked one of the teams if they'd seen Jay and Anna, but none of them had.

They were then approached by professor Oobleck, who spoke at a rapid pace, and apparently without conscious control of volume, "WHAT IS ALL THE COMMOTION ABOUT!" Sasha flinched a little and looked slowly over at Nick with an annoyed expression.

Nick was the one to ask, "You haven't happened to see our teammates, have you? Jay and Anna? An arrogant redhead in glasses and a long black coat, probably accompanied by a shy faunus girl in black clothes, purple hair, and cat ears?..."

Oobleck's hand twitched, "NO, I HAVEN'T SEEN THEM! IT WOULD BE DREADFUL IF THEY'VE WONDERED OFF! THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS PLACE!" Nick couldn't cover his ears and look rude to the professor...But he chuckled in his head, 'Didn't Jay travel through the Forever Fall during his time abroad? And with Anna with him, they could handle anything.' But still...If they ran into something in high numbers, who knew what could happen...

Nick flinched as his thoughts were interrupted by Oobleck's shouting, "AS THEIR TEAMMATES, IT IS UP TO YOU TO GO FIND THEM AND RETURN THEM ALIVE! I HAVE FAITH THAT YOU WILL COMPLETE THIS TASK, OR RISK EXPULSION TRYING!" Nick looked at Sasha, and they quickly ran back to the spot where Anna and Jay had been. They looked around for a minute looking for a sign of there direction. The constant fall of the scarlet leaves made it difficult, but after a moment, Sasha tapped Nick's shoulder and pointed North East, where disturbances in the leaves by the wind revealed crushed leaves, leaving a slightly darker outline of where their feet were stamping as they dashed off into the forest. Nick and Sasha began sprinting into the woods after their teammates.

Jay didn't stop moving, nor did he even consider slowing down. Anna followed, keeping up without too much difficulty, but still...She wasn't even sure why they were jogging through the woods. Jay had apparently spotted something and immediately had bolted after it. Jay finally stopped, and Anna, having not seen him do so, rammed right into him at nearly full tilt. He didn't stumble, but she did, nearly falling over, but Jay, just as fast as he had stopped, turned on his right heel and caught her before she fell. He sighed and pulled her to her feet, where she found herself inches from him.

She thought she could feel the heat in her cheeks, when Jay took a quick step back, "Last time you fell over after we bumped into eachother, I ended up in a wheelchair...I'd prefer it not happen again." he stated, keeping a straight face.

Anna calmed her nerves and laughed a little, "Yeah, that would be...Awful...S-sorr-"

"**Don't**...Say it. I know what you were about to say, and it's not necessary. It's now past. Forget it." he said, turning to look around the clearing they'd come to. Anna looked around, trying to see anything out of place.

She frowned after a minute, unable to see it, "Uh...Jay...What are we here for?..." She asked reluctantly.

"I saw a bug..." Jay said without looking back. Anna's mouth dropped.

"A...A bug?...Is...Is that really the reason you dashed out in to the woods so suddenly?! A tiny insect?! Is this a joke?!" Anna's voice was rising out of shock. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. He had scared her, ran off into dangerous territory...In pursuit of a bug.

Jay's eyes widened as he turned back to Anna, "Wha-No! Not a bug. Not a living bug at least. I didn't see an insect, I saw a machine. A bug."

Anna considered this, and decided it didn't make it any better, "Yes...The forest is full of mobile camera bugs...Beacon keeps the-"

"No, not one of Beacons...They included a picture of a bug from Beacon in the handbook, in case a student came across one while out on one of these trips...That wasn't one of the Beacon models..." Anna still wasn't convinced. Maybe it was her hear pounding from the sudden scare and run here...Or maybe it was...

"Maybe they got an upgrade?..." she asked, trying to help find an answer.

"Perhaps...But...I suppose there's only one way to know for sure..." Jay whispered as he walked slowly through the clearing. Anna began following him at a steady pace, next to Jay.

She looked around, before realizing something, and turning to Jay, "What did it look like?" she whispered.

"Silver...Round...Rings of fire and wind dust to keep it moving." he said without taking his gaze from the field around them. Something was not right here. Suddenly, Sasha and Nick came crashing through the trees at full speed, stopping short of them and breathing deeply for a few seconds.

Nick stood to his full height, "WHAT THE FUCK, JAY?! YOU'RE ALONE WITH ANNA FOR THREE MINUTES AND YOU DITCH US?!"

Jay frowned, "I don't think I like your implications. I ran off because I saw something that should not have been there, and Anna ran after so we don't get in trouble."

Sasha's eyes widened, and she pinched the bridge of her nose with impatience before Nick spoke again, "...Dude...Think about how this looks...You ran off into the woods...With a girl. A girl on your team. Can you see how a professor might...MISINTERPRET THAT?!" Nick shouted. Anna turned away, feeling her face become red.

Jay remained composed, "You don't. Need. To shout." He enunciated his words in a low volume.

Sasha looked up, "You know, even if that isn't what you were doing, which I'm not completely convinced of, you still ran off...Into dangerous territory. Do you even **have** a good reason?" she asked sounding as if her patience was nonexistent.

"I saw a monitor bug that was not of Beacon origin...We're being watched. We're being watched by something that **isn't **Beacon..." Nick's face turned serious. Now that it was brought to his attention, his gut told him that they were being watched...Even...Right at that moment...

* * *

The team stood, looking around the clearing. Nothing appeared to be out of place...It was quite a perfect silence. There weren't any sounds of birds or Grimm. Just the light soft crumple of the leaves under their feet as they turned and moved through the clearing, unsure of what they were even looking for. Nick then looked down at his feet. Something looked odd. The team spread out. Sasha began to squint, as it became more difficult to see through the fog. Then her eyes widened. She waved her hand through the fog that had suddenly rolled in from the forest. It moved like smoke around her fingers, and waved in the pattern of her motion. Nick was staring at the fog in worry, Anna in wonder, Jay in analysis. Jay had let his eyes turn gold, but something wasn't right...This fog was hard to see through. He began to rub at his eyes under his glasses, trying to rub the blur from his eyes. But the more he stared, the harder it became to discern any signatures or make up of the fog.

Anna turned to Jay, "What is this?...Can you tell with those eyes of yours?" Nick didn't turn, just waited for Jay to speak.

Jay waved his hands through the fog in absent curiosity, "I'm...I'm not really sure...It's...Foggy."

Nick turned to him, "You don't say, fuckface..."

Jay shook his head, "No, not...You idiot. I mean it's...I can't...My vision isn't working right. I can't see correctly. Whatever this is...I can't an-..." Jay stopped short. His eyes widened in terror. "Oh by Castiel's temporary insanity..." Anna looked over, a little surprised, as did Sasha.

"Uh...What?" Nick asked, arching his brow.

"Jay, is something wrong?" Anna asked, worried at what the answer would be. Everyone in the team was shocked when they looked over at Jay and saw him speechless, with his eyes wide in worry.

"We have to get out of here..." he muttered.

Just then, a voice sounded above the silence, "It's far too late for that..." the voice came from a man, as far as they could tell. Everyone turned and looked around, the sound was echoing around them, and they couldn't find the source. Laughter came next. This came from a woman. Jay backed up, until he came to a tree. He gritted his teeth and the world became clear again as he deactivated his Semblance. Now he understood.

"This fog...It's cutting off our Semblance...We stand here, unaware, for a few minutes, while the poison seeps into our skin through this fog...Until we're left without our special abilities..." Jay closed his eyes...He felt he might as well have been blind. Jay opened his eyes again, as the fog began to fade from the clearing. He walked over to the other members of the team, who had walked together to stand back to back. Then, they walked out of the forest. One from the north, one from the west. Nick and Anna, who were standing facing away from the strangers, moved to stand next to their teammates. The woman was average height, with blonde hair up in a ponytail. Her shirt was black, with light blue patterns across the front and long sleeves. Her pants were long and white, with bell bottoms. She wore a smug grin, and began to walk forward to meet in the clearing with the man. The man, was large and strong looking, with scruffy gray hair. His black shirt was sleeveless, with gray borders. He wore simple jeans with heavy looking brown combat boots. He carried with him a large cylindrical canister. It was black and had rounded ends. There was a handle on the top, and it was large with a slit in along the length of it. There were also gray-ish rings placed at intervals down the body of the cylinder. It was strapped to his back, and he walked with a casual attitude to stand next to the woman. The whole team watched them carefully, wondering when they'd move.

The man spoke up first, "I'm surprised you figured that out. Most people don't. They just jump into battle, and when they try to use their Semblance and fail...They die with a shocked look on their face. It's quite entertaining." the man said, smiling.

"So that means you intend to fight us?" Nick said, hoping to get them to reveal something, anything that could give them information that could lead to an advantage.

The girl sneered, "No. We intend to use you as practice, then kill you." Jay tried to determine their weapons, but he couldn't see any dust signatures, and couldn't be sure about what he saw.

"Then names. Give us your names." Sasha demanded.

The woman's face turned aggressive, "Don't talk to me like that, you little bitch!" she shouted.

The man put his hand on her shoulder, "Calm down. It's not important." it seemed to calm her down significantly.

Jay couldn't stand this. He couldn't see...His eyes had lost their power, and he was being threatened. Treated like a doll to train on. He glanced around at his teammates. It appeared to effect them to. Anna was calming herself, confidence coming to her expression. Nick looked like he was flexing his arm and shoulder, trying to loosen up. But Sasha...Sasha appeared only tense. Jay understood that though. Both of them relied on their Semblance, a lot. Which puts them at a disadvantage. But that didn't matter. Their teammates were here. They could rely on them and their skill. They would give no warning, and no quarter. Nick was the first to move. He ran forward, straight towards the duo. He pulled free his sword, and the two opponent's spread out. They two immediately began to spread out and move in two different directions. The man moved back and pressed a few of the triggers on the handle of his large canister, in sequence, and from the slot on the handle came a series of needles, which he caught in the handle as Nick closed in on him. He switched the hand in which he held the container, and threw a few of the needles he held. The flew towards Nick, who had to stop and raise his arm to they would simply skip off of the metal arm. He looked down at them, but didn't have time to look them over, because the man had continued to press the triggers in sequences, and was hammering Nick with a barrage of needles through which, he couldn't break through to get close. Jay came up next to Nick. They shared a glance, and and they began to move in sync, to to try and get close. Jay clipped the bayonet endings on to his tonfas, and they moved in opposite directions. Jay began to shoot towards the man, and he grabbed the handle of his large metal container and began to swing it around him like a club, deftly blocking the shots. Nick switched to the Ice canister, and shot towards the man. He didn't want to be his by that, so he leaped to the side. Both Nick and Jay saw an opportunity, and began moving in. He began to throw his needles again, but Jay moved into the path, and blocked them with his left arm. They sting into his skin, and Jay was ready to shrug it off, but then a pain took his arm, burning the length, making him feel like his arm was on fire. He had to close his eyes as Nick jumped clear over him, and moved in for close combat. Jay moved to the right, ready to give support when he saw his chance. Nick swung his black sword over and over, but the man dodged and dodged, carrying the large cylinder like it wasn't heavy at all. He then began to counter, swinging the thing again. Nick blocked his attacks with his metal arm, but the man suddenly jammed a needle into his metal arm. Nick shouted, and swung again with his blade, but the man ducked back and moved to swing. But Jay slid down in front of Nick, and swung low with the bayonet, forcing the man to jump over his attack. Nick reached forward with his metal arm and grabbed the container. The man refused to let go, and so Nick turned and threw them both to the right. He didn't go very far, and landed on his feet. Jay stood, and realized there was blood on the ground. He pulled his sleeve back and found to wounds from earlier. For some reason, the wounds had expanded, and continued to bleed.

Jay's eyes widened, "Poison?" he muttered. He got it now...He understood everything once again. He looked over at Nick's arm, which looked like as though he was loosing control of it. Why would a poison work on that arm? Why didn't the needle break? The other ones snapped and just chinked off of his arm. "Listen up Nick. Those needles have an array of different uses, I think...They're also varied in size shape and probably metal. He has metal piercing needles and a whole lot of neurotoxins...So let's be careful. My Sight isn't working, so I'll have to be careful and stay in line of sight. You have to be careful to. You're loosing use of that metal arm right now, and you can't heal..." Jay said quickly, while the man stood and waited patiently for them to finish their conversation.

Nick didn't flinch, "I love a challenge." he said simply.

Sasha struggled to move quickly with her incredibly heavy sword. She'd trained to use her claymore without her strength, but it was still difficult. She swung wide arch's, trying to keep a hold on the blade, and with every swing, the blonde woman continued to dodge around Sasha, as though she was dancing. Anna intervened, swinging her poleaxe with great skill, but the woman didn't seem fazed, leaning all the way back to touch the ground, ducking Anna's wide swing. Anna twisted the staff around her arm, bringing the blade up through the air, she flipped left, kicking Sasha in the face, and knocking her back. The woman hadn't reached for any weapon, nor did she appear to have one.

The blue colors on her shirt shifted like water, and she laughed sadistically, "Oh you poor little bitches...You can't handle me. I'm gonna tear you apart, and there's nothing you can do about it." Anna's eyes narrowed. She was quickly getting annoyed with this woman's attitude. Sasha and Anna stood side by side. Sasha ran forward, and the woman didn't even move until she got close. Anna ran forward after her, to provide support. Sasha swung as hard as she could downward, but the woman dodged and jumped easily over her, landing on the other side. The blade landed in the ground, and Sasha used it's weight as a focal point to turn her body. She pulled the blade from the ground and used the handle to block an open-palmed strike. The blow hit the base of the handle, and blue sparks flew as the blade was knocked back, and Sasha with it. 'What the hell was that?' Sasha thought as she stumbled back. Anna had reached her, and the poleaxe had switched to the long-sword. She began to attack ruthlessly, not letting up. The woman's face turned to a sneer as she danced more and more out of Anna's way...And right into Sasha's. Sasha swung, being careful not to get to close to Anna's swings. The woman looked like she was having a hard time avoiding their swings from both sides of herself. She dodged both of their attacks and back flipped in the air to land behind Sasha. Sasha moved forward, followed by Anna, and the woman flipped back, jumping off of her hands, back onto her feet, Sasha put her foot forward, ready to catch her as she landed, and finish this stupid game they were playing...That is until she slipped. Her foot his something solid and smooth...Too smooth. Her foot came right out from under her, and she fell back, her blade moving back towards Anna, who immediately had to stop and put her blade up to block Loachsamhail as it fell on her. Anna fell back, as Sasha fell back, her shoulders landing on Anna's knees. They looked over as the woman came to stand over the two of them. The woman hadn't even retrieved a weapon, and she had them both on the ground. She had a viscous smile on her face. She raised her hand, palm open towards them, and the patterns on her shirt began to glow brighter. Sasha didn't wait for her attack and raised her claymore up. She pulled the trigger, over and over again. The woman blocked the shots with just her hand, which didn't seem to take any damage, but instead sparks of blue crackled off of her palms with each shot. But the shotgun on her claymore was very powerful, and with each shot, she stumbled back, farther and farther. Sasha and Anna stood, and recovered themselves. They weren't sure what they would do now though. Nothing they were doing was working, and they still didn't know what kind of weapon she was using. Sasha and Anna crouched, readying themselves to fight.

* * *

Anna swung towards the woman with all her skill. She continued shifting the axe from hand to hand, twirling it by the long staff like a baton, twisting it around her neck and shoulders, catching it in her palms, and swinging. But the woman was fast. She danced this way and that, moving as though she was gliding, and moved from the path of each individual strike. Sasha stood back, and took a shot every now and then, through Anna's formation. But even these didn't seem to have any effect on the woman, who'd already discerned their patterns of movement. She picked apart Anna's wide spread defenses, moving right up to her. She swung at Anna, bringing her open palm hard across her face. The slap was very clear to hear, and Anna stumbled and fell back. It felt as though Ms. Goodwitch had just struck her across the face with her riding crop. Her head spun and everything was fuzzy. Sasha stared in dis-belief as the woman jumped back and giggled. She looked over at Anna, who was still slightly dazed. Even from the distance they stood apart, Sasha could clearly make out the red hand-print across Anna's face.

The woman muttered under her breath, "Faunus whore..." Sasha's eyes widened in anger. Suddenly she remembered every terrible thing anyone had ever done to her...Every little torment she felt bubbled to the surface in anger. Her heart beat faster as her body was renewed with adrenaline. She could feel her heartbeat, and she ran towards the woman, filled with fury. Her strength returned, as she leaped up, easily heaving Loachsamhail behind her. The blade came down hard, with all her anger in the swing. The woman dodged to the left, her smile fading. The blade crashed into the ground, smashing away dust and dirt in a wave-like cloud. She yanked the sword free and raised it to point at the woman in one hand. She began to shoot towards the woman, who had to block the high power rounds, just as she did before. But Sasha had caught her slightly off balance, and she stumbled a little with each shot. Sasha marched forward with determination, each shot pushing back her opponent. But the woman suddenly ran off to the side, moving away from Sasha. Sasha watched her move and timed her own dash to move in front of the woman, who had moved towards Anna. She slashed and the woman stumbled. Anna, now recovering her bearings, jumped over Sasha and brought her axe, now transformed to long-sword, down on the woman. She gritted her teeth as she clapped her hands over her head, catching the blade between her palms. She fell, landing on one knee, only one foot still on the ground. Anna kept pressing down, not letting up. The woman's eyes narrowed at Anna before she closed them, and the design on her shirt began to glow. But then, Sasha coughed out blood, and collapsed behind Anna. Anna gasped and turned to her, and the woman took the opportunity to throw Anna's sword to the side, and move up towards her. She swung, this time with her fist clenched, and struck Anna, who was nearly thrown off her feet behind Sasha. She fell to the ground, and looked over as the woman raised her hands above her head, looking down at Sasha. She couldn't move, and could barely even look up at the woman as the designs began glowing again, and her a frigid mist came from her hands. Sasha had fallen do to an overuse of adrenaline, that had caused her heart to beat irregularly for a short period, and she couldn't breath. The woman was ready to finish Sasha off, even as Anna stood, and tried to come to her rescue...

The man with the needles began to click away on the triggers, and more needles came out as Jay and Nick moved forward towards their target. They weaved this way and that, dodging as the man threw them in swarms. Jay moved in, blocking them with the bayonet endings, and taking swing after swing. The man took his large container, dodging this way and that. Jay gritted his teeth, and dodged as he swung it like a club. 'This is difficult,' he thought, 'without my Sight, I can't read his moves well. It's hard to predict that thing's area...' Nick lifted his arm with the last of his control, and emptied the ice canister in a single shot. He raised the large container in defense, and the blast struck it. The whole thing, plus his hand was frozen in a great block of ice that held the canister in place. The man's eyes widened as Nick leaped over the large block of ice. He landed on one side of the man, and began slashing at him with his blade, his prosthetic arm to move, limp at his side. The man couldn't dodge, lest he risk loosing his arm, so he bit the bullet and grabbed the blade in his hand. Blood rolled off of the blade, over his fingers and down to his wrist. Nick smiled as he pushed the blade more, so that the man couldn't let go. Blood continued to flow from his hand. Jay moved to his position, and began to shoot at the man from a good vantage point, so he wouldn't hit Nick. But the man wasn't done yet. He tightened his grip, and raised his leg, shoving it into Nick's stomach. The kick threw Nick back, but the man didn't let go of the blade. He then flipped it through the air to catch it by the handle. In his bloody grip, he deftly cut through Jay's attacks. Jay gave up long range and went in close. He slashed with the bayonet endings, but his movement was limited. Jay was used to being able to move in circles around his opponents, but with that huge block of ice, Jay could only stay in position and attack. But the man was incredibly adept, even with limited range. But that didn't matter. Jay smiled as Nick came up behind him, and wrapped his one good arm around the man's neck.

"You didn't forget about me, did you?" Nick whispered menacingly into his ear as he dropped Nick's sword. Jay took the opportunity, and stabbed towards him, Nick tightening his grip. But suddenly, Nick's eyes widened, and he released his grip, weaving under the man's arm, and in between he and Jay. Jay stopped his attack, as Nick grabbed his sword from where it had been dropped, and ran off towards the other fight. Jay tried to recover before his opponent, and jabbed towards the man again, but the man wouldn't fall so easily. He easily grabbed the bayonet ending in his still bleeding left hand, and yanked forward, jamming the blade into the ice, and pulling Jay forward off his feet. The ice cracked, and shattered as he pulled the needle container free. He didn't waste even a second in swinging the thing at Jay, who could only put his arms up to defend his chest as the metal slammed into him. The force lifted Jay off the ground, and he flew back, his tonfas interacting with his aura to repair dents in the chambers. He landed hard on his back, and gasped. He could only barely dodge the needles the man threw before Jay rolled to his feet. He watched the man click the triggers, and take the poison covered needles in his bloody hand.

"How...How are you holding poison covered needles with an open wound?" Jay stuttered, still trying to regain his breath.

"My Semblance...I'm completely immune to poisons, venom's, toxins, and neurotoxins. I've never been sick a day in my life..." he said simply, seeming very forth-coming. Jay breathed heavily, crossing his arms over his chest in an X, like he always did, but this time in defense. The pain from the earlier poison still wracked his body, and made it difficult to stand in battle. It didn't matter, however. Because just as they prepared to move towards eachother, something happened that drew both of their attentions from their fight...

* * *

Nick ran towards the woman, who was standing over Sasha. Sasha lay with her face covered in blood, and Anna had began to run forward, but she clearly wouldn't make it. Nick bit his lip. If he could only feel his prosthetic arm...He'd be able to take a shot at her. He'd be able to do something. But he feared that he too might not make it in time. He pushed himself to run faster, pushed himself to move farther, faster. A ball of blue dust had formed in between the woman's hand. She was smiling and laughing. Nick wouldn't take this. In one desperate attempt to stall her just a moment longer, he threw his sword at the woman. She heard the whistling as it flew and her smile vanished as she jumped back. The ball of dust fell from her hand. It struck the ground and from it, ice started to shoot out in viscous spikes. The ice began to form more and more, spreading out, towards where Sasha was on the ground. 'Those spikes would kill her if they reach her.' Nick thought, and finally got close enough to stand in between the ice and Sasha. He pulled up his arm, and yanked open the wrist chamber. Quickly, he pulled out the fire canister, and slammed it against the ice. The following explosion through Nick clear over both Sasha and Anna. He hit the ground and nearly choked, unable to breath. The ice shattered, causing both Jay and the man with the poison needles to look over at them. Nick didn't stay down long, and quickly jumped to his feet, and manually pulled the lightning canister to the front, and yanked it out. The woman had come to her feet, and was beginning to move forward, her anger becoming evident, as she moved back towards Sasha. Nick narrowed his eyes, and threw the canister towards the woman. She dodged it, and it struck a tree behind her. The canister shattered, and through the trees, a huge bolt of lightning rained through the tree canopy. It struck the tree where the canister had hit, which was still flickering wildly with bolts of electricity. The tree caught fire nearly immediately. Jay turned back to the man, who had taken his cylinder, and began running towards the woman.

Ignoring completely Nick and their team, he put the cylinder down, and grabbed the woman by the shoulders, "Time's up, Iskelle. We have to get out of here. That lightning bolt probably alerted Beacon professors to our locations. We can't waste time here..." The woman, apparently named Iskelle, looked up at the team with fury evident on her face.

"Shut up, Leif. Just let me kill them. It won't take long. Just let me finish these bitches." she said through gritted teeth.

Leif, as she'd called him, shook her by the shoulders, "No, we don't have time...We have to stay ahead of Beacon's eye. We get out of here now. We can't let them get that close to us, not yet. We still need time." he reached back and grabbed his cylinder, and pulled her by the arm into the woods. No one on the team could even stop them.

Nick fell back, sitting on the grass, still breathing hard from being knocked back by the explosion. Anna had walked over to Sasha, and knelt down to examine her. Jay walked over, having sheathed his weapons, still clutching his chest, where he could feel the pain from the poison

. "How's she holding up..." Jay asked, and Nick looked up, awaiting the answer. Anna continued to examine her, opening her mouth to check her throat, feeling her wrist and neck for a steady pulse, and removing her shoes to look over Sasha's extremities.

There was no sign of any issues, at least not that Anna could see, "She'll be fine...Just needs some rest, and lots of water." Jay shook his head. 'That's always a good fix, isn't it.' he thought. Nick sighed a clear sigh of relief.

Jay looked over at him, "Good move, with the lightning canister...Bad move with the fire canister...Fucking awful move, leaving me to deal with uh...Leif, I think it was, on my own." Jay said to him, a little annoyed.

Nick looked up at him, "You know what **your** mistake was?...Being a little bitch..." Nick retorted. Jay rolled his eyes, not even fazed by Nick's constant barrage of cursing. He walked over and offered him a hand. Nick grasped it with his right hand, and Jay pulled Nick to his feet. Jay stumbled, and Nick caught him, holding him up, Jay's arm over his shoulder. The poison was causing Jay more pain, and he could barely speak properly. Only Nick and Jay went to get the professor, who had in fact been running to their location after seeing the lightning bolt. Professor Oobleck came up next to Anna, and looked down at Sasha. He handed Anna his coffee cup, and lifted Sasha up. They began to move back towards Beacon. Jay had began to get lightheaded at the poison, and every now and then muttered something about a shadow, and before he would let anyone take him back to Beacon for an antidote, he became quite insistent that they gather the sap that the team had acquired, and bring it back with them. He stumbled away from Nick, nearly tripping right into a tree, and began babbling about the sap. Nick laughed and carefully pulled out his scroll, hoping not to let Jay see him record his ramblings. He stood, supporting himself on the tree he'd nearly hit, and pointed at the sap, saying they had to take it. It was very important that they take the sap. The sap was of import. He continued for a good two minutes before Nick finally stopped laughing, and asked one of the other teams to help carry their sap with them to the school. Jay was silent after that as Nick helped him back to Beacon.


	2. Chapter 2 Aftermath

When they returned to Beacon, Nick carried Jay in to have an antidote administered to his poison. It took him an hour to get over the effects, during which time he fell back and forth between being held to the bed, twitching as the poison made it's way from his system, and utter silence. Sasha was placed on one of them beds, simply needing to sleep. When Nick asked about his arm, he was given a dust canister to place in one of the chambers in his arm. This dust canister would help flush out the toxin from his prosthetic arm, and he'd be able to use it in less than an hour. Nick helped to hold Jay in place, and at about half an hour, his arm was at least moving, and he provided more help than he was able to before. By the time Jay woke up, clear of the poison, Nick's arm was completely recovered. The nurse said they'd like to have him return in the morning, so they could test him to know the poison had left his system completely. Anna had been sitting by Sasha, not moving. Just watching. She couldn't help but feel like she'd caused this. She was distracted in battle...Had she not turned when Sasha fell, she could've ended the fight with the woman, and Sasha would have been able to seek help earlier. Even though she was told that Sasha would be fine, she still felt bad for not being able to help her friend. Jay was up and moving quick though, and Nick went over to Sasha's bedside. He tapped Anna on the shoulder. She barely looked up at him. She stood and walked towards the door, where Jay stood waiting. Nick sat down where she had been sitting, and placed his hands on his knees, and sat waiting. When Anna walked over to Jay, he motioned to the door with his head. They left in silence, both sure Nick would watch Sasha carefully. Anna and Jay walked out into the hall, where Ozpin and Ms. Goodwitch were waiting for them. They walked down to a small box of a room, with nothing but a table, two chairs, and a light fixture.

"Who would like to go first?" Ozpin asked as they entered the room.

"That would be me..." Jay spoke up quickly, hoping to spare Anna this annoyance of a formality.

"Very well then. Step in." he motioned through the door. Ms. Goodwitch grabbed his shoulder, and raised an eyebrow at him before he entered. Jay sighed and undid the clip on the belt that held his tonfas. He pulled it off and handed it to Ms. Goodwitch, before entering the room. He walked in and sat down in the chair, as Ozpin turned on the light. Ms. Goodwitch took Anna to the small side room, where there were two more chairs.

Ozpin sat opposite him, and they stared at eachother for a few moments before Jay spoke up, "You gonna ask me what happened, or am I in here to sit and wait for the janitor?..." Jay asked, a little impatient.

"Were you going to tell me what happened then?" Ozpin said, hoping to start things going. Jay leaned forward.

"You've got some pests in your neck of the woods..." Jay said sarcastically. Ozpin saw his left eye had turned red.

"Are you going to control that, or are we going to move on to your teammate..." Ozpin pushed. Jay's eyes narrowed for a minute. He closed his left eye and sat for a moment, glancing around and muttering to himself about his environment. Since there was just a room, there wasn't much to say, even to himself, but after a few moments, he opened his left eye, which turned gold, with only flecks of red before fading back to hazel.

He sighed again, "Ok...What happened was...I saw a bug. And before you say it, no...Not a bug like that. I mean, a mechanical bug. Did you guys get an upgrade on yours?" Jay asked. Ozpin shook his head, "Then you've got a problem. This bug wasn't a Beacon model bug. This was...Different. Something else was watching us students. And I think we may have met the observers." Ozpin leaned forward, listening intently now, sipping his cup of coffee. "Before I go on, could you have someone, anyone, bring in a rootbeer float? I haven't eaten all day, and I'm hungry after having poison purged from my system..." Jay leaned back and crossed his arms, displaying his adamant position. "And while you're at it, why don't you ask Anna what she'll be wanting." he added. Ozpin sighed and pulled out his scroll. After a moment of typing, there was silence for a few seconds. Then a man in a Beacon official suit came in, and placed a large cup with the rootbeer float on the table in front of him. Jay smiled, satisfied.

"Now... If you'll continue..." Ozpin insisted.

"Ok then. After trying to chase the bug down, we were confronted by a man and a woman. The guy was big. Really big. Gray-ish hair, jeans. And he carried a large cylinder filled with poisonous needles. Apparently his Semblance was Immunity. As I understand it, his name was Leif." Ozpin nodded, as he pulled out his scroll. "The woman was blonde...Long blonde hair in a ponytail. Black shirt with blue designs. Bell-bottomed white pants, really bitchy. Her name was apparently...I think it was Iskelle. She specialized in various uses of ice dust in combat..." Ozpin considered this a moment. Jay waited, as Ozpin glanced back and forth between him and his scroll. Ozpin then raised his scroll up, and showed him two pictures. They clearly depicted Leif and Iskelle together. They looked happy, and younger, but it was clearly them.

"Leif Malladus, and Iskelle Femmaren?..." Jay read the caption. He looked up at Ozpin, "So who are they?..." Jay asked. Ozpin looked reluctant. Jay frowned, "That guy poisoned me...Nick showed me footage of me under that poison. I looked drunk. And do you know the pain that stuff caused?...Not to mention that blonde one bitch-slapping my teammate, which she **will** pay for, and calling her a whore. Don't hide this from me, Headmaster. I'm a team-leader. This is information I need. Information my team needs." Jay finished strongly, knowing he'd get the information he wanted. Ozpin looked at him a minute, taking in his words.

"Leif and Iskelle once attended this academy. They were star students. Rumor had it they were together, set to marry, even. But they vanished suddenly, just before graduation. No one's heard from them, or seen them. Where they went or what had taken them was unclear. There was no trace, and we've never found a trail that could point us towards them. Until now..." Ozpin finished.

Jay frowned, "So what you're saying is that me and my team currently have more information about them then Beacon?..." Jay smiled smugly and shook his head, "So **that's **the point of this invasive little exercise..." Jay muttered. He shook his head and laughed. "Alright then. Here's what I remember..." Jay launched into a lengthy and detailed explanation about the events of the encounter. Anna, who sat listening with Ms. Goodwitch, was shocked at the extent of his memory. But he could only describe Leif's style of combat, which he did with great detail. "Although...I can't really say much for Iskelle. I didn't participate in the fight with her. Your best bet would be to ask Anna or Sasha. But..." Jay stopped.

Ozpin raised his eyebrow, "But?..." Jay cleared his throat.

"As team leader, I must advise against this course of action. My teammates and I have been through an ordeal, and I would humbly suggest waiting at least forty-eight hours before speaking with Sasha, or Anna." Jay finished, not flinching. Anna was slightly surprised. Why would he suggest not talking to her?...She could give them quite a detailed description herself, but of Iskelle. After hearing that she used specialized Ice dust in combat, she had begun to fill in the gaps about what happened during their battle. Ozpin thought...He didn't look convinced, but nevertheless, Jay didn't flinch.

"...Alright. I will take this suggestion into consideration. For now, you and Ms. Aristole may return to your dorm. Jay rose, taking the cup with the remainder of his rootbeer float, and left the room. Ms. Goodwitch came out of the room with Anna, who looked at Jay. He only looked at her for a second, before walking away towards the dorm. Anna turned to Ozpin, who was walking out of the room behind Jay, and bowed slightly before turning and catching up to Jay.

* * *

Sasha stirred in her sleep. Slowly at first, not wanting to be awake. Her whole body ached, and her heart was beating heavy in her chest, making her head hurt. Her eyes opened slightly, but were too foggy to see anything. She smacked her lips, and tried to lick them, but her mouth was too dry. She squinted against the light, that was more prominent now that her eyes were slightly more open. She reached for the counter, where there should have been a large bottle of water waiting for her. She hoped it wasn't warm, but at this point, she didn't hold her breath about it. But her hand waved over the counter a couple of times, finding no bottle. Suddenly, when waving her hand again, she found the bottle. The bottle was ice cold. She reached around to hold the bottle, but her fingers encountered metal...Cold metal. She let go, and rubbed her eyes till she could see, and looked over. Nick sat there, holding the bottle out for her to grab. He held it in his left arm, which explained how it was cold. He was using his Ice Dust cartridge. She reached out again and wrapped her fingers around the bottle. She pulled the top from it and threw her head back, drinking the entire bottle in less then a minute. She gasped for breath when she finished, and looked back over at Nick, who was still sitting there. His eyes looked dark from fatigue, and he sat with his forearms on his knees. Sasha thought about this, 'How long has he been sitting there? Has he slept? Doesn't look like it...Dumbass...Why did he stay here. It wouldn't do either of them any good if he was tired.' But she still couldn't help but think it was sweet. Then it all came crashing back her, in a sudden rush. She remembered the forest, and the woman, and the fog...But there was something else. She thought she could remember an explosion...But when did that happen? Did it happen? She didn't dream that did she?...No...No it was definitely a memory...The woman...had been standing over her, with the little blue ball. But there was a black streak, and suddenly an explosion...What happened...Then she remembered Nick sitting there.

"Oh, uh...Thanks for the water..." she muttered, not sure what to say.

"No problem." Nick responded simply.

Sasha decided to break up the silence before it became to unbearable, "So what happened...After I passed out, that is...How'd we...Ya know, not die."

Nick considered a moment, sitting in silence, not moving, "The woman, who we found out was named Iskelle...She was going to kill you. When you went down, it distracted Anna, who got thrown back. Then that...Iskelle, was going to kill you...So I stopped her." Nick said, not giving away the details.

Sasha frowned a little. It was the details that she wanted, "How? What happened? Play by play, cap, I was down, remember?"

Nick smiled a little and sat up straight.

"I uh...I threw my sword. I barely missed though...She dropped the little blue orb, which began sprouting death-sicles...Which, had it hit you, would've sprouted them right through your body...So I pulled out my fire canister, and...Destroyed the death-sicle..." Nick shuddered a little, remembering the explosion that took his arm. He knew it wasn't that powerful an explosion, but still...It made him feel the same.

"And this explosion killed them?..." Sasha asked, trying to determine the details of the escape.

"No. Jay was over fighting Leif-"

"Leif?" Sasha interrupted.

"Yeah...Guy with the poison needles. Jay was keeping him busy while I threw my lightning canister...Huge bolt of lightning, right through the treetops...That Leif guys came over to her, told them they had to get the fuck outta Dodge...And they left."

Sasha gritted her teeth in anger, "So they got away..."

Nick put his hand on her arm, "We'll go after them...I'm pretty sure Jay's already workin' his verbal magic with Ozpin to get us a chance to go after them again...This time on our terms... And leave it to Jay to make it good. I'm sure we'll pay em back. I'm gonna make sure you get your payback, in full." Nick spoke without wavering. Sasha looked down at his hand, still on her arm...She thought she felt her face heating up, but couldn't be sure, his metal arm was really cold...

After a moment, Nick realized he was still holding her, and his eyes widened as he took his hand away, "I'm sorry...I should've remembered my arm was still cold...That was my mistake...Anyway...You're looking like you're up now...If you'd like me to get goin'..."

Nick almost moved to stand, but Sasha stopped him, "Uh, wait...You don't...You don't have to go yet...I mean, if it's not any trouble, I could do with the company..."

Nick sat back down, "I'd be glad to stay." This time, Sasha could feel her face heat up with the blood flow.

He sat back down, and looked u at her, "I'm glad you're safe...Would've been hell to pay if my teammate was injured...I'm pretty sure I could find a tank **somewhere** to hunt those two down with..."

Sasha raised an eyebrow, "A tank?...Interesting choice...Thanks, but I'm capable of getting them back on my own..." Sasha assured.

Nick frowned, "Maybe, but that's not the point...I'm...I'm a team captain. And I say you can't just go after those two alone. Those two tore our formations apart."

"Look, I appreciate that in your own kinda stupid way, you're caring for my safety...But that fight wasn't fair. We were surprised. We were basically cut off from the herd like animals and ambushed...On my terms, I bet I could take them both."

Sasha tried to keep her voice steady, but even she wasn't quite sure of that, and apparently, Nick knew it, "No you can't. You may be strong, but you shouldn't try to do things on your own like that...Did that thinking help when you and Jay nearly tore eachother apart? Did that work back in the forest, when you collapsed to exhaustion? No...I'm your team-leader...I'm responsible for safety of my team. I wasn't able to stop you from getting a busted jaw, so I'll have to take care in the future. Jay's also a team leader, so he doesn't warrant my looking after." Sasha's eyes widened. She thought to herself, 'Why is he so interested in my safety?...' Sasha brushed her hair over her ear. It had been let out of it's ponytail, when she was taken back to the school.

"Nick...Did...Did you leave Jay to handle that poison guy on his own...To help...To save me?..." Nick paused a moment, considering the question. His eyes widened and his face turned red. He stuttered for a few seconds, which just confirmed it to Sasha.

She gasped slightly, "Uh...Nick...You shouldn't have done that...That was a really stupid move...You should've finished the fight with that...Leif, was it...He was the one who could cut off our Semblances...That ice bitch wouldn't have been a problem with you Anna and Jay..."

Nick leaned over, putting his palms on the edge of the bed, "That's not the point. I don't..." Nick stopped. Sasha wondered what he was going to say. She had a hunch, but wasn't sure, and wanted to hear it from him.

"What...You don't what?" she pushed.

Nick stood, and turned, trying to avoid her eyes, "I don't...Well...I mean I didn't...I didn't want to win if it meant your death...That just ain't worth it." he said. Sasha was shocked. She didn't know what to think. It wasn't something she saw coming. Nick stood silently, waiting for her to say something, hoping he hadn't freaked her out. Sasha muttered, still not sure how to react...It wasn't something anyone had ever thought of her, save her mother.

"No one's...No one's ever...Been that concerned for my safety...I've always been strong...Reliant on my strength. I've not really needed anyone's help-"

Nick interrupted her as she spoke, "That's not how it works anymore. That's not how this goes. You're going to be a Huntress...You're entering...A whole new league. That's the whole point of this team thing. You can't do it alone. We're here to help support you."

Sasha spoke up again, "Why don't you say what you're meaning...You wanted to say that **you're** here to support me, right?" Nick's eyes widened, and he continued stuttering for a moment, again confirming it to her. Again she didn't know what to say. Nick closed his eyes and yelled curses in his head, knowing that he was clearly not hiding his thoughts well...How did Jay do it, he thought. He tried to put on a good poker face, but it didn't work through the heat in his face. Sasha pulled the blanket off of her legs and tried to stand, but appeared unsteady.

Nick grabbed her hand and shoulder, "No, stop...The nurse said you need rest. So just...Rest. I can stay here until you're up." Nick offered. Sasha smiled as she lay back down, and pulled the blanket back over herself. Sasha's thoughts were running back and forth between flustered and thankful. Nick sat back down.

Sasha glanced at him, "You're really just going to sit there?... You're...You're actually...You actually care that much about what happens to me?"

Nick nodded, "To be honest, I've kinda had my eye on you from day one...That sounds so freaky...But I don't mean it like that...I mean that you're...You really caught my eye. And since we became teammates...It's just gotten harder to ignore."

Sasha couldn't hide the red in her face, "Well, um...I've always thought you were kind of awesome...Especially the arm...I know not many people think that, but I find it hard to think of it as anything else..." Sasha reached out and grabbed his metal hand. Nick's metal arm had always been sensitive to stimulus, having a very low Absolute Threshold. But something about this was different than normal...Even in his metal prosthetic, he felt warmth in her hand. It wasn't anything like what he'd felt before. He looked down at her. Suddenly her grip tightened, and she yanked him in. With her free hand, she grabbed him by the shirt collar, and pulled his face right over to hers. Nick looked wide-eyed, and slightly scared. "I care for you too, ok!" she shouted through her bright red cheeks, then yanked him closer still and held him in a kiss. The two kept close like this for a few seconds, Nick not caring to move away, and Sasha not letting him anyway. When she let go of him, neither of their faces were red anymore. Instead, Nick was filled with a happiness, that felt like gratitude...A happiness for realizing that his feelings were reciprocated. And Sasha, just filled with the feeling that this wasn't bad. In fact, that felt quite fitting to her...She'd always liked Nick better anyway. Nick sat back. Neither of them spoke. Instead, Nick leaned forward and put his head on the bed next to her, content to sleep. Sasha also felt content, and laid a hand on his black hair. She smiled slightly as she fell asleep along with Nick.

* * *

Anna closed the door behind herself as she and Jay entered their dorm. Jay removed his hands from his coat pockets and sat down on his bed, crossing his fingers in front of his face, and sat in silent consideration. Anna went and sat on Sasha's bed, across from him. He didn't speak, and the silence went on for two minutes before another sound was heard.

Anna cleared her throat, "So...Why did you stop Ozpin from speaking with me? If you don't mind me asking..."

Jay looked up at her, "I'd rather have avoided putting you under that stress. And besides...We've given him good information, and that's what he wanted. And now, we still have information to give. Which, played correctly, will get us our choice of ally teams, and a big say in an operation that would give us the chance to go after Malladus and Femmaren. They were foolish...They should've killed us when they had the chance. But they failed, and now they'll pay the consequences. We're going to go after them. We'll fight them on my terms, and we'll crush them. They'll see just what a mistake they made in failing to bring us down." Anna was slightly worried by his tone.

He sounded like he wasn't himself, "So why couldn't we just persuade Ozpin to let us do that back there? What's the point in waiting?" she asked, still not quite understanding what Jay was planning.

Jay again looked up and shook his head, "No...Ozpin will need time, just like we will. He'll have to sort out his plans, and analyze the information he **does** have. That gives us time as well...Time to train up a bit, and basically get our pick of the litter to work with. I'll need to be as careful as Ozpin with my own planning...That way we'll have the full advantage when we face Leif and Iskelle again...Like I say, knowledge makes an advantage. And we have the knowledge right now. When the time comes that we've trained and picked our ally's, we'll give Ozpin the rest of our information. We'll have the best chance of taking them on. Get it?" Jay was speaking as a leader now. The leader that moved with his head, seeing everything he could.

"So...We're basically holding out on Ozpin till we're good enough to go a second round, then using our information as leverage?" Anna asked.

"That's exactly what we're doing. Now we should go tell Nick and Sasha what we're doing."

he stood and moved towards the door, "Uh...Jay?" she muttered.

Jay stopped and turned, "What." he didn't sound like he was too happy to take questions.

"Are you sure we should go after them? Maybe we should just give our information to Ozpin and let them handle it...They're far more equipped to-"

Jay interrupted her, "No. I'm afraid that's not going to happen. We're going after them. I'm not going to let them get away with what they did. And besides, I want to pay them back personally. I'm not going to leave that to the teachers. It's our fight now. I'll make sure of that." he turned and walked from the room, leaving no room for debate. Anna followed him out the door, and walked behind him in the hall. There wasn't anything but the silence as they walked. She didn't exactly feel right about this plan. What if Jay was wrong? What if someone got hurt because of it? There was no way Jay could plan for everything. She stopped walking, and stood considering. Jay kept walking for a few steps until he realized Anna wasn't walking behind him. He turned and looked at her, "What is it?" he asked.

Anna considered her words carefully. Jay was practically a genius, and she didn't want to sound stupid.

"Jay...I'm...I'm not sure I can put complete faith in your abilities as a leader..." she spoke quickly, just wanting to get it over with. Jay turned completely and walked over to face her. Anna didn't like this...It felt like she was being stared down by a parental figure...Or a wild animal. She felt small as he stood in front of her. He was taller than her, and that didn't help. He didn't speak for a few seconds, which felt more like minutes...Or hours...She couldn't tell, her heartbeat was blocking out the sound of any clock nearby.

"Let me guess...I lead to much with thinking...I over think, in fact...It seems that logic is the only thing I understand, right?"

Anna shook her head, "That's not it...Even you can't make a perfect plan...If someone got hurt because of a mistake-"

"I won't make a mistake. I know what I'm doing. Ozpin wouldn't have made me a leader if he didn't think I did." Jay spoke through her.

"And if you didn't? Think about it Jay." she looked up at him now, regaining confidence, she stepped up to him, to tell it to his face "They thought they had a perfect plan to. They thought they'd be able to take us out like a candle. They had us right from the beginning, taking out our semblances...They had every advantage, and failed. If you did the same, we'd pay for that mistake...You can't just...You're not perfect, Jay. And as a leader, you can't look at this as just **your**responsibility. So why don't you do the smart thing, and take the advise of your teammates, so we can do this right..." Anna was breathing a little heavier as she finished. Jay's eyes had widened, and he looked down at her, slightly taken aback. He thought how it must have felt for Anna, when he walked up on her like that...Like a dog trapping a cat. But he should've known, any animal is most dangerous when cornered...And she was right. This wasn't something he could plan for alone. Leif and Iskelle had failed because they couldn't think of everything, mostly their desire to fight and live through the fight. And if Jay did this, he'd be leading his team into a slaughter...She was completely right about this...But he didn't want to admit that. He felt slightly sheepish, having not been thinking about how foolish he sounded...He turned away from her, hoping not to let her see this reflected in his face, which had broken it's usual calm, turning red. He was embarrassed that he had basically been put in his place by his teammate.

He cleared his throat, "Ok then. I suppose as a leader, it's a part of my job to listen to my teammates. And since it's obvious you feel so...Strongly...About this, then I believe it's worth considering. I shall remember what you've said...Sorry I was acting like that. It was foolish of me. Let's go. We should tell...Um...I mean, we should probably see what Nick and Sasha think of this plan..." Jay continued walking, slipping his hands into his coat pockets. Anna held her hands behind her back, and moved to catch up. She didn't walk beside him, instead staying a step back, hiding her triumphant smile. Her heart was beating, but in a good way. She was quite happy to have won a battle of words with someone like Jay. They didn't speak again as they walked to the nurse's office.

* * *

Jay and Anna stood looking over the scene. Jay's eyebrows were raised, and his mouth hung open. Anna just looked on with a smile, taking in the adorable moment. Nick's head was resting on the bed next to Sasha, who had curled up slightly around him, and had her hand on his head. Jay had a thought, and smiled a mischievous grin. He turned to Anna, and tapped her shoulder. She snapped out of her satisfaction at the moment, and turned to him. He leaned in and began whispering into her ear. Anna's cat ears twitched as she listened, and her eyes widened a little. She looked over at him, using facial expressions to ask if that was really ok. Jay nodded and gave a thumbs, still with that questionable smile. She went over to one of the beds and gathered a sheet. Jay pulled his scroll out and took a couple of pictures. Anna went over, and being as quiet and gentle as possible, she wrapped the sheet around Nick's waist, making it look like he was wearing a long dress skirt. Anna walked back over to Jay, who was giggling furiously, trying to hold back full laughter. He took another couple of pictures for the moment, as pay-back for filming him under that poison. He looked satisfied over at Anna, and mouthed 'Thanks.' Then he walked over to Sasha's bed, and yanked hard, pulling the blanket off of her. She gasped and started, sitting upright. At her quick motion, Nick also woke up and sat up. Jay began laughing, and Anna realized the joke he was making. After a minute, they became aware of Jay and Anna.

Nick looked down at the sheet wrapped around him, "What the fuck..." he muttered.

Through his laughing, Jay spoke up, motioning to Sasha, who still wore her combat outfit, "I guess we know which of you two wears the pants between the two of you!" Jay continued laughing furiously. Anna put her hand over her mouth, holding back her own giggling. Nick and Sasha both realized what he meant. Nick rolled his eyes, and tore the sheet off of himself. He didn't care about Jay's stupid little joke, but apparently Sasha did. Her face turned bright red, and she looked a little angry. She threw her legs off the bed and reached over for her claymore. She stood, lifting her blade and pointing it at him. Jay smiled slightly, already foreseeing what happened next. Her legs crumbled out from under her, and she fell over. The blade clattered to the ground, and Anna gasped. Jay shook his head, holding his forehead. Nick stood and went to help her up. Jay sighed, "Don't just jump up after sleeping off a heart problem. It doesn't end end well." She stood, with Nick's help, stretching her legs. When she could stand, she reached down and picked up her blade, putting it into the sheath on her back. The sheath had a long open slit down the side so the blade could slip into the sheath without difficulty

. Anna cleared her throat, still smiling at the scene, "So...What happened here then?" Sasha and Nick shared a look.

"Well...Um...Nick was...He just..." Sasha stuttered for a few moments.

"I was...I worried about her safety and..." Nick also wasn't sure how to explain. Jay and Anna also shared a look.

Upon seeing this, Sasha sighed, "Ok, listen up. No one's ever cared about me like Nick here does. He's already showed it, and I after hearing it...I don't know...I just kinda...Felt the same. He's kind to me, and it makes me feel better then I've felt in years. So yes," she grabbed Nick's arm and pulled him over to her, and he just simply let her, "This here...Is my boyfriend. If you've got a problem with that, tell that to Loachsamhail. And now, because shut-the-fuck-up-Jay," she pulled Nick over and kissed him. After they separated, Sasha turned back, "So there." Jay and Anna both stared for a moment, neither knowing what to say. Then Anna made a high pitched squealing noise, and began clapping while bouncing up and down. Jay just continued standing there, not saying anything or flinching.

After a moment, Anna walked forward and gave Sasha a hug, which looked glad to accept, "I'm so happy for you!" Anna said. Sasha was glad that she had her new friend's support.

Nick looked over at Jay, "And you?" he said, clearly in reference to Jay.

"I don't care. It's your choice...I have absolutely nothing to do with it." Jay responded, putting his hands up slightly defensively. Nick rolled his eyes again, and Sasha didn't care. But then Jay remembered why he had walked in their to begin with. His face became serious. "Ladies, let's get back to the dorm...We've got some important things to discuss." all of the team looked over at Jay. They all glanced at eachother before walking back to the dorm in silence. Sasha held onto to Nick's prosthetic arm on the way though, her fingers woven with his...

When they got back to the dorm, Jay began a speech about his plans. Hearing it, you'd think it was prepared ahead of time, but Jay didn't ever have to prepare any speech. He told them that his plan was simply to convince Ozpin to get them in on a mission to find and bring down Leif Malladus and Iskelle Femmaren. But Jay also said that he believed it best that they select an ally team. He then went on to say that upon consult from a friend, he thought it would be best to ask the team about this plan. Sasha looked over at Anna, who was looking away, with a satisfied smile on her face. Sasha quickly understood who this friend was, and tapped Nick's arm. He turned to her and she whispered in his ear for a minute. Jay stopped talking and stared at them as she spoke silently to them. Anna was straining to hear them, but Sasha was just barely making any noise at all. Nick's eyes widened and he looked up at Anna, then at Jay and smiled as well.

Jay didn't look amused, "Why do you mutter? Something you want to share with the whole class?" he gestured dramatically around the room, then looked at the two of them, still sitting there with their hands together.

Nick cleared his throat and shook his head, "No...No, please, continue, oh great and mighty Vulcan..." Nick said sarcastically.

Jay rolled his eyes, "I think I may have a team in mind for us to work with. We'll see them tomorrow, when we begin one-on-one combat classes. I'll speak with Ozpin and Goodwitch so that we can meet with the team I have in mind."

"And why would Ozpin let us randomly pick a team and start getting all close with?" Sasha asked, still not sure about this plan.

"Because...Because we still have information. I told Ozpin about Leif and his skills and such. Anna has comprehensive knowledge about Iskelle...And Ozpin only knows what we tell him."

"What do you mean by that?" Nick asked, confused.

"I mean that Leif and Iskelle vanished several years ago. There has literally been absolutely no word on them since. None. Not even a whisper. The only thing that Ozpin knows...Is what we know." he looked at Nick and tapped his own nose, "Information makes an advantage...And we have the information." Jay smiled smugly.

Nick's face was slightly shocked, "Hold up...Are you telling me that we're withholding information from the Headmaster...In order to get him to do what we want him to?! Are you insane?! We're not in command here. I want to get them back too, but think about what you're doing here!" Nick said, standing to face Jay. Jay glanced at Anna, who gave him a look. Sasha noted this, but quickly turned her attention back to this discussion.

"Nick, you're misunderstanding. Right now, we have the greatest advantage against them. Not only do we have knowledge about them, but we have something else...Something much more effective..." Jay spoke with confidence.

"Care to clue us in?" Nick said, waving his arms for a minute, a little annoyed.

"Experience...Even if it's not much. It's something. We're stronger than they thought we were...If we fought them again...With our advantage. With our ally's. We can win...And if you think we can't, say it now..." Jay looked around the room. No one spoke up. "Well?...Do any of you think that if we tried...If we...Put our heads together...Do any of you think we couldn't win?" Jay spoke with a passion that made them sure of his words. That was one of Jay's talents though, and anyone he'd ever spoken to knew it. Jay glanced at them, one after another. Sasha looked over at Anna, and the silence dragged on for a few seconds... "That's what I thought." Jay said, interrupting the quiet. Jay sighed though, and looked at Nick, who was still standing up, "How 'bout this...Anna and I will go tell Ozpin all of our remaining information right now...Ozpin's a reasonable man. I'm sure he would let us do this if I talk to him, and get him to see why it's a good idea. We won't hold out information on him, and we'll get our chance to go show them what a mistake they made, challenging us, and not finishing the job." Jay raised his eyebrow in silent questioning to Nick. Nick looked at him for a few moments. He still wasn't completely sure about it, but this was actually a very good compromise. He turned back and looked at Sasha. She appeared to be deep in thought. After a few more seconds of silence, she looked over at Nick and nodded. He looked at Anna, who immediately nodded as well. He turned back to Jay.

"Ok then. You and Anna go talk to Ozpin...If he agrees, that means that we'll be training with this team you've picked tomorrow..." Nick looked a touch reluctant to agree, but the census was clear. Jay smiled and looked over at Anna, who stood and followed him from the room. Nick sat down next to Sasha, and looked at her, "Were you thinking what I thought?" Nick asked. Both of them knew what he was asking about, and Sasha nodded slightly.

"Ooooh yeah. I thought it..."

* * *

Jay and Anna wasted no time in finding the Headmaster and sitting him down to tell him all of their remaining information. Anna held nothing back, explaining everything she could about Iskelle. Ozpin said nothing, simply nodding and sipping his coffee every now and again. Anna sighed when she was finished, and Jay, who had been sitting next to her this time, attempted to speak up, but Ozpin stopped him. He said he knew what Jay was going to say, and that the answer was yes.

"But you cannot take on this mission alone. For this, you must-"

"I know, sir...We must have an ally team. I already have one in mind..." Jay interrupted, bringing his thoughts to the table. Ozpin raised an eyebrow and leaned back in his seat. "I've been observing the teams, you see. I normally do that to pass time. As stated in the handbook, we're allowed to sit in on other student's training sessions...I did it to pass time during my suspension, Sasha would join me once or twice, but that's irrelevant. The point is, I saw quite a few teams that would be suitable allies. I had my eye on one team in particular..." Jay said.

Ozpin waved his hand, "And which team would that be?" Ozpin asked.

"Team SCRT." Jay said, pronouncing the anagram as Secret. Ozpin raised his eyebrow. "I believe it would be best to train with them for this mission. They were one of the groups that we were set up with went we went into the Forever Fall and fought them...After careful observation, I've come to the conclusion that we'd work well together. What do you think?" Jay finished, hoping to get a positive answer from Ozpin.

After several agonizing minutes of consideration, Ozpin looked at Jay, "Very well then. I shall arrange some time for your teams to be introduced properly, so that you can explain the situation to them."

Jay smiled, "Perfect. Thank you, Headmaster. You won't regret this."

"I hope not," he responded. Jay and Anna stood and left the room. As they walked back to the dorm, Jay glanced over at Anna out of the corner of his eye, careful not to make any movement she'd notice.

He cleared his throat, "Impressive...That recollection back there...You've got a good eye..." Jay muttered.

Anna looked around, a little surprised, "Hm? Oh, me? Uh, thanks...I uh...I was top of my class at Signal...I should at least have some ability in battle, right?...I kinda wish I'd done better though...Back there in the forest...I wish I'd...Been stronger." Anna spoke a little out of it, as though she was considering something far off, or lost in a thought...

"Perhaps you could have been stronger, yes...But to admit, I could've used some improving upon, myself...We all could have. There's no point dwelling on it now though. We simply have to move forward. Ok?" Jay didn't look at her as he spoke, content to keep moving at his normal pace.

"Are you...Trying to comfort me?" Anna asked, slightly surprised at the idea.

"I believe that's what you would call it...I'm a team leader...It's a part of my job. Moral and such...I can't have you limiting your own power because of the past. You have to look ahead, and expand your abilities to the coming battles." Jay spoke with a steady voice. Anna considered this as they reached the dorm. Jay opened the door and entered, launching almost immediately into an explanation of what had occurred. Anna followed him in and sat down where she sat before. Jay told them about the team he had selected, explaining that they would be meeting their allies tomorrow after breakfast, in one of the conference rooms, where they would formally greet eachother and discuss the situation. After this, Jay said that he advised they went to sleep immediately so that they were well rested for tomorrow. It was clear to all of them he was eager for tomorrow. They went about, slowly readying themselves for bed. By the time everyone had gotten to bed, it was still only 7:00 pm. Sasha muttered to Nick about Jay's excess enthusiasm. Nick responded by saying he was showing a bit too much emotional response for a Vulcan... Jay didn't care. He only wanted to begin the training, and he fell asleep quickly. The rest of them fell asleep as they always did though.

The next morning Nick was woken by the small zap from his prosthetic arm, as always. At least today the setting got the time right. He sat up on his hammock, his head brushing the ceiling. He looked down into the room, and his jaw dropped. Jay was already up, dressed, and showered, and had taken to pacing with his hands clasped behind his back. Nick was shocked, and tried to rub his eyes, thinking it was an illusion. But sure enough, Jay still walked this way and that impatiently. He stopped when he noticed Nick sitting up and staring at him.

"Well come on then, let's go let's go let's go...Up and at'em..." he whispered at Nick hurriedly. Nick thought that was odd. If he was in so much of a rush, why whisper so as to not disturb the girls? But it didn't matter to him. He climbed down from the hammock as silently as possible and gathered his things to go shower. By the time he returned, both Anna and Sasha had woken, and Jay was laying back on his bed, headphones over his ears. He was listening to something with a high tempo, because Nick noticed his foot moving back and forth at a quick girls left quickly to go shower, and Nick sat down on Sasha's bed. He looked over at Jay, and tried to call him. But the music was apparently very loud, because he couldn't hear Nick over it. Nick frowned, reached over and grabbed the pillow, and swung it as hard as he could with his left arm. Jay's shock was evident when he removed the pillow from him.

He took off his headphones after pressing pause, and looked at Nick incredulously, "What the hell?!" he shouted.

Nick shook his head, "Well for fuck's sake man, I thought you'd gone deaf. Anyway, I wanted to know why you're so fuckin' excited for this?..."

"Because...Several reasons. First, I just want to meet the new team. After watching them and seeing what they're capable of...It'll be nice to have a standard look to. And also...The quicker this happens, the quicker we go after Leif and Iskelle. I can't wait to put them in their places. And besides, I'm more than a little curious. Aren't you? These two left almost no trace of themselves...They just dropped off the face of the world, and now...Here they are. I want to know what they've been doing...Why they vanished...Don't you?" Jay finished excitedly.

Nick shook his head again, "No...No, I can't say I do...Then again, I'm not insane..." Nick said sarcastically.

Jay scoffed, "Insane is quite dependent on what the standard of normal is. I hold no standards of 'normal,' therefore, insane has little meaning to me. And I suppose that's to be expected from someone with no sense of adventure." Jay said in as arrogant a tone as he could manage. Nick rolled his eyes while shaking his had once more. They sat in silence for nearly twenty more minutes before the girls returned.

"Took you long enough," Jay said as they came in.

"We can take all the time we want, you pompous asshole." Sasha retorted.

Jay came to his feet, "Not today, I'm afraid. Now let's go. We're already late." Jay said as he moved past them through the door. The rest of them followed slowly. As they walked through the hall, the whole team except for Jay dragged their feet. Jay didn't seem to care that they lagged behind, and kept walking at his own fast pace. They came to a door labeled 'Conference Hall.' Jay had already gone in. Nick opened the door and let the girls walk in before him. Inside was a large round table. Eight chairs surrounded the table, and four of them were already occupied, Jay was just sitting down in another, and the team sat down in the rest.

The other team had been sitting patiently. Nick recognized two of them...They were the kids he nearly crushed with a lamp post...They looked different now. It was clear they were twins, now. They both had the same light blue hair. Their battle gear also looked eerily similar, with design alterations to show gender difference. They sat next to each other, both turning in the chairs, this way and that in a perfectly matched rhythm, with kid-ish grins on their faces. Their suits were the same blue as their hair, with black as well. Next to them was a brunette girl, who's very long hair had a headband in it. She had a green short-sleeved shirt with a purple combat skirt. She had a neutral look on her face. Finally, sitting between the brunette and Jay was a taller man, who had spiky brown hair, and simple clothes on. He had a regular gray t-shirt, with blue jeans on. He had placed what looked like a medium sized backpack on the table. But it was completely metal. It looked like it could fold out.

Jay looked the pack over with his Semblance and smiled, "Impressive weapon..." he said to the guy.

He smiled at Jay, "Oh, thanks. I made this myself. Took forever. Totally worth it." he said enthusiastically.

Jay turned to his team "Guys, this is Team SCRT. This here," he put his hand on the guy's shoulder, "Is their team leader, Samuel."

"Most people just call me Sam," he added happily.

He turned to the girl next to him, "I'm Rachel..." she said simply.

The twins stopped moving in their chairs, "I'm Christopher, call me Chris."

"I'm Tia, that's all you can call me." they said in sequence. The team looked back and forth between themselves. After a few seconds, Jay shook his head and rolled his eyes.

He cleared his throat, "I'm Jay...That's all people've ever called me." he said, gesturing to his team.

Nick, who was sitting next to Jay, got the message, "I'm Nick...Me and Jay co-lead the team..." he said, taking the prompt.

"I'm Anna...I'm just...Yeah, just Anna..." she said, doing her best to sound confident.

"I'm Sasha...If you try to nickname me, I'll chop you into little pieces." she said. Jay groaned a little, putting his hand to his forehead. Nick just chuckled.

Sam didn't look affected by this threat, "Great! Now that we're introduced, let's get to it. We were called out of our dorm this morning by a school official, and were brought to this room. They told us we were to meet with another team about a joint mission? And that you guys were going to give us the info..." Sam gave all the info he had about this meeting rather quickly.

Jay looked at Anna, and began his half "Ok...This mission is going to be retrieval. We have recently come into information regarding two people who've been missing for several years. No one's had any word on them until now."

Jay stated, "If that's the case, then why did they only recently show their faces? And why to you guys?" Rachel asked.

Nick looked at Jay for a moment before Jay resumed, "I suspect they may have..." he said. The twins had leaned in, more interested now. As did the rest of Jay's team, not knowing what he meant.

Jay looked at them, "Sorry guys...I may not have mentioned something...After finding out that they've been missing for a few years, I thought I'd get a hint, and go look through the records. As it turns out, several other students from their year have gone missing as well. None of them have been seen since..." Jay informed.

Oddly, the twins were the first to speak up, "So what about their team? Were they among the missing?" they said in unison.

All of team JNAS was shocked by this, but Jay shook it from his head and continued, "Yes, as it turns out, they were. However, their bodies were recovered three days after their disappearance...It looked like they'd been slaughtered by a hoard of Ursa."

"But Ursa don't travel in hoards..." Anna interjected.

"No they don't. Especially not Ursa Major. But that's what the report says...It just doesn't look like it could've **been** anything else...They were the first to vanish after our two suspects though, and were the only two whose bodies were ever recovered." Jay responded.

"Our two suspects? After them? So the people we're going after the two who vanished in the first place? And this information, how did you come by it?" Sam jumped in as well.

"We encountered them in the forest. Their names are Iskelle Femmaren, and Leif Malladus. They were apparently betrothed before they vanished, two or so weeks before graduation. Their team vanished a day from graduation day..." Jay said with a slightly solemn voice. The twins looked at eachother for a moment.

"Do you suspect that Iskelle and Leif had something to do with these disappearances?" Nick asked Jay.

"Almost certainly. I'm even more convinced after seeing their demeanor." he responded.

"What do you mean by that? Their demeanor?" Rachel asked.

Anna answered for him, "He means that we met them...They're capable killers, and very willing. They nearly got us, and I think he suspect they're responsible for the other disappearances. They told us they were going to use us for practice..." Anna said with an uncharacteristically forward and confident voice.

The twins looked at each other for a moment.

"So what kinda of gear or style do they use?" the two asked in perfect unison again. Sasha, who was sitting next to them, was really unnerved by this synchronicity. She wanted to scooch over a bit, or switch seats, anything to be a bit farther from them...But she really didn't want to seem scared or rude, so she just held her tongue.

Anna spoke up again, "You'll have to ask Jay or Nick about Leif, but I can tell you about Iskelle. She probably had training in dance or gymnastics when she was very young, because her movements are flowing and circular, and they compliment her Ice power well."

"Ice power?" Rachel interrupted.

"Yes. She has a vast aura, and she uses it with the Ice dust she carries on her person. It's not even all that much dust, but with her aura...It goes a very long way." Anna said, hoping to try and summarize Iskelle without having to begin a rant like she did for Ozpin. All of Team SCRT went silent, considering this information. No one in Team JNAS spoke up either.

"Alrighty then...And Leif?" Sam asked. Jay looked at Nick, who shrugged. Nick didn't really care who told them about Leif.

Jay cleared his throat, "Leif Malladus carries a large black cylinder...It's a metal I couldn't identify without my Sight."

"Without your what?" the twins asked in unison.

"Hm...Perhaps I misspoke. My Semblance...It's the ability to see clearly that which others cannot. I couldn't use it though."

"Why not?" Sam interrupted.

"Because of his weapon. Leif Malladus uses an array of poisons. They're stored in the cylinder along with what I can guess are several hundred throwing needles. All of different size and shape. Each have a different purpose. Each have a different poison. I only experienced two of his poisons. One that shut off our Semblances, which he released in the form of a toxic fog which leaked the poison through our skin. And a second, I was struck with a poisoned needle in my arm. It caused searing pains that spread throughout my whole body. It didn't shut down my nervous system though. Nick was hit with one of those. He has metal-piercing needles that shut down the nervous system. This is so that he can bring someone down regardless of armor. It only didn't shut Nick's whole body down because it hit his prosthetic, and wasn't able to spread. But the poison was able to shut down artificial motor neurons, so one can assume it's very potent. As for his style, he's very big and very fast. He knows his weapon **very** well, and can throw needles at an astonishing rate. In this way he keeps you dodging, unable to move close. If he hits you, things are guaranteed to get worse for you. And he can also swing the cylinder like a club, and it's very powerful. He's also deceptively clever, using your own attacks against you. Oh, and lastly...Due to his Semblance, he's completely immune to his own poisons. So don't think to use his needles against him. It wouldn't work." Jay finished. Nick scoffed a little. 'It'll work...I'll **make** it work...' he thought. Team SCRT exchanged looks between eachother. After a minute of nodding and looking this way and that, Sam turned and addressed Nick and Jay.

"We're in..." he said with a smile.

Just then, the door crashed open. The motion made air sweep through the room, and everyone turned in surprise. In walked Mickey, leaving her cart in the hall. She wore a big smile on her face, and her usual casual wear. Nick looked at her, and remembered being tossed like a toy across a room, despite the slight amount of panic that pulled at him, he couldn't help but think that Mickey was awesome. In every way. The twins grabbed onto each other and fell back in their chairs at her entrance. Sam and Rachel looked unaffected. Anna wasn't sure what to think, because she didn't yet know why Mickey was here. Sasha's eyes widened in terror, and she ducked under the table, hoping Mickey hadn't seen her. Jay stood up and walked over to her.

"Hiya Mickey!" he said as they both gave each other a hug that would break an Ursa's back. Jay staggered back a little, "Damn...I guess that makes you the winner this time..." he said, holding his sides as he sat back down.

Mickey let out a loud laugh, "That's right. You may be a hunter in training now, Jay, but don't think you can best me." she said with full confidence. Jay chuckled as he shook his head. Mickey walked out to her cart and opened the side door, taking out a few boxes. She walked back in with three boxes.

She lifted them and examined the names, "I've got two boxes here for...The Dragoon siblings?..."

The twins popped up from the floor, "That's us!" again they spoke together. "Unprocessed and unmixed Fire dust crystals and Lightning dust crystals." she said as she tossed the boxes to them. Jay recognized the symbols on the side. Chris caught the lightning dust, and Tia caught the fire dust.

Mickey held up the last box, "And one Earth dust mixture dust crystal for...Ms. Gaias?" Mickey read off the label.

"That would be me,"

Rachel spoke up, and everyone turned to her, "Ms. Gaias, eh?" Anna asked. She liked the sound of that name.

"Yes. That's my last name." Rachel said plainly, as she caught the box. But then, Mickey turned her attention to team JNAS. She walked over in between Nick and Jay and slammed her palms on the table. She looked back and forth menacingly between them.

"I heard you guys got in some trouble out in the Forever Fall...Can you guys go one week, just **one** without getting into some kind of trouble? Is that possible?" Nick and Jay glanced between eachother.

"I think we can manage a week..." Jay said. Mickey stood, crossing her arms.

"Good. If you do, I'll bring pizza, soda, and ice cream." Nick placed his hand on his chin in thought, 'Why'd he say that? There's no way we can manage a week...' he thought to himself.

Mickey went over and stood before Anna, "Keep em outta trouble...Particularly the redhead...Sounds difficult, but I think you'll manage." Then she walked over to where Sasha had been sitting. Sasha had quickly come out from under the table and sat in her seat before Mickey's approach, and looked up at her, trying to stay confident, although she was screaming a little inside.

"...If every now and then you need to crush something to relieve stress...Make sure not to break anything vital." Mickey said simply. With that, she turned, and walked out, closing the door. Everyone waited in silence as they heard the cart wheeling down the hall. Everyone turned back to the table.

"Who was that?..." Sam asked.

"Just a local dust shop worker..." Rachel said.

Jay frowned, "No, she's not. That's Mickey. She owns the shop. And she's one of the greatest people alive." Jay corrected.

After Mickey's entrance and sudden exit, Sam suggested that they head to the large gym to get some sparring in, and get a feeling for eachother's skills. On the way there, Jay told him that he'd had his eye on Sam's team for a long while now, and had specifically requested them as partners.

"So you know our weapons and styles? Let's here it. You should explain it to your team so they have an idea of what they're sparring." Sam responded. Jay sighed and turned around, walking backward and facing his team.

"I'll start with Sam's weapon. That metal pack he's carrying on his back is basically an exo-skeleton. He wears a special pair of gauntlets and boots. The pack then folds out, forming a frame on his body. It covers his back and chest, and frames his arms and legs. The back is also armed with two very sharp and very long spikes that he can take off and duel wield as short swords. This skeleton gives him incredible movement capacity. He may be a melee specialist like you, Anna, but he's also just as capable as you..." he said while gesturing to Anna. Anna considered the implications of his words and turned a little red. Then Jay continued, "Rachel there uses a whip...This whip is made of a special elastic material. It can stretch for a grand total of twenty meters, and retract to a minuscule three meters. There's a small oval shaped bulb at the end of the whip. Stay clear of that. The material also lets dust flow freely through it. The earth crystal she has in the hilt of the handle lets dust flow through the whip, making it not only tough, but incredibly hard-hitting. If it hits your body, even with armor on, you're going to have bones broken."

"Sounds like quite a fighter..." Nick interrupted.

"Yes, well, she has a specific range at which she's best. A bit like the Goldilocks Zone around a sun. Too far, and she can't defend...To close, she can't attack. Use this to your advantage, and don't let her keep you at a distance." Jay finished his explanation of Rachel, and turned to look at her. She also turned back to see him, but immediately turned back to the hallway.

Sam cleared his throat, "She says that was a good explanation of her." Jay smiled and nodded, then turned back to his team.

"Then...There's the twins..." At the mention of them, the twins both turned and came back to stand on either side of Jay, and began walking backwards with him. "These two both duel wield police batons. Except better. They're very destructive. They can destroy an Ursa Major's skull with one swing, and without so much as a dent. They're two and a half feet in length, and each of them has small pores in them for the use of the element crystals they received a few minutes ago." Jay gestured to each of them in turn, starting with his right, "Christopher here uses Lightning crystals. The lightning flows over the length of the baton, and he can also throw bolts of electricity by swinging the baton and releasing some of the dust through the pores. Tia uses fire dust, with her batons becoming incredibly hot, or even catching fire. She, like her brother with his lightning, can throw small balls of fire dust by swinging the batons in the same fashion." The twins both beamed with pride at Jay's explanation.

They smiled huge childish grins and raised their hands to their chest in unison, "And as we speak as one, and fight as one, we see as one." they said in unison. Sasha looked away, slightly annoyed.

Jay continued, "Yes...That's not a joke. Their Semblance is Shared Vision. They can each look through the other's eyes. It's how they found eachother in the Forever Fall during initiation. They were the first team formed for this reason. This also gives them a huge power in battle. They can fight with such incredible synchronicity...It's quite frightening, really..." Jay muttered, looking at them from the corner of his eyes. The twins smiled and both held up piece signs. Then they turned and walked through the open door to the gym, which Sam and Rachel currently held open. Jay also turned around, thanking both Sam and Rachel for holding the door open as they passed. The gym was incredibly large. On the one wall, there was the control board that Jay knew would wire up with their scrolls and control the environment, allowing them to fight under many different conditions, with many different simulations. Sam and Rachel walked up to the group.

"Alright, I think we should coordinate some practice matches. Who would like to face who?..." Sam asked, gesturing to the group.

The twins clapped their hands together, "We're on a tag team! Anyone who wants to face us has to have a partner." they said in unison.

Although this had begun to annoy Sasha more than she could bare, she still spoke up first, "I think Jay and Anna would make perfect opponents for you..." she said. She and Nick looked at eachother for a moment. Anna turned red, realizing what they were doing, but before she could speak up, Jay did, "Excellent idea. Anna's ability at close range is a valuable asset to fighting these two. And given their special sight ability, it would be quite fitting for me to face them as well. Good idea, Sasha." Jay spoke simply. Nick rolled his eyes, understanding why...Jay was completely and utterly oblivious...Anna turned to him and stuttered an agreement. "Alright, and you..."

Nick pointed at Sam and smiled a friendly smile, "You're my opponent."

Sam smiled back, "You got it. Let's see what you got..." he responded.

Rachel and Sasha looked at eachother, "I guess that means it's you and me..." Rachel said. Sasha simply nodded.

"Alright! Let's get this party started!" Sam said enthusiastically.

**(AN Merry Christmas or whatever today is for you, i said i was giving a double update, and for once im on scheduled, woohoo. And rate and Review, let me, and more importantly, our real author MZT1418 how we did and anything we need to fix. If you have any story ideas or arc ideas, PM me either on here or on , thank you all)**


	3. Chapter 3 Preparations

Nick and Sam walked over to one of the places in the room where there was a painted ring on the ground. It wasn't a big ring, but for an unofficial spar, they would be ok with going out of the line. Nick reached back and pulled his sword out of it's sheath. Sam reached onto the back of his belt. He pulled of the gauntlets Jay mentioned and pulled them onto his hands. He clipped the buckles that held them to his arms. They reached almost to his elbow. The back of the gauntlets had a small loop near the wrist, and the back of the fingers were covered in sharp blade edges. The palms had dust crystals inlaid into the palms. The looked like fire crystals. Nick was surprised at this, but remembered what Jay said, that he was a close-combat specialist, so they weren't for long range attacks. Nick looked down at Sam's boots. They had metal shin braces, and had sharp blade edges pointing out from the sides of them. The back of the shin guards also had those loops, and the boots were steel toed. He then flexed his shoulders, swinging his arms in circles for a second. Then suddenly, his face became serious, as the pack made a ringing sound. Flat bars of metal came from the pack, swinging around his arms and clipping on the the loops on the gauntlets. At the elbow, there was a small metal piece that fit around the joint, and clipped into place, holding itself in place. The same happened on the legs, with the flat metal poles clipping into place on his legs, and having the small fitted metal plate swing around to clip onto his knees. These also clipped onto the loops on the back of the shin guards. Then the pack folded a layer out around his arms and body, and clipped together to form a plate over Sam's chest. On his back, there were two curved spikes that stuck out, and had blade edges all the way down to the metal pack. They looked like they also had handles...But at the sight of this, Nick's eyes widened.

"Something wrong?" Sam asked him, smirking.

Nick shook his head, "No...Just when I spar with Jay, he always just stands there, not even drawing his weapons...He kinda waits for a minute or two, until we're in the middle of combat...It's almost a little weird seeing someone draw their weapon completely first thing." Nick explained.

"Hm...That sounds disrespectful. No. You're my opponent, and an equal. I treat you that way by bringing all of my power, right from the start." Nick considered these words a minute, then smiled.

"I think you and I are going to get along just fine," he said, getting into his combat stance.

Sam made the first move, lunging towards Nick. He jabbed with his hand, covered in the blade edges. Nick raised his left arm, and the blow glanced off the metal arm, and Sam immediately swung his left hand, as though he was an animal, swiping at prey. Nick raised his sword to block his hand. He wouldn't want those claws cutting him up. But Sam was clever, and reached back a little with his right hand, grabbing Nick's prosthetic arm, then gripping Nick's blade with the metal gauntlet in his left. Nick's weapons had both been immobilized. Nick thought on his feet, and opened his left palm, moving it to face Sam's head. The canisters switched to the wind canister, and he unleashed a blast. Sam dodged back slightly, letting the blast miss. But this loosened his grip enough, and Nick wrenched his left arm free then swinging with all his force towards Sam's head. Again Sam dodged a little farther back, this time loosening his grip on Nick's sword, which he tore from Sam's iron grip, and swung again for his head. But Sam dodged back even further.

At this point, his back was parallel with the ground, but his hands weren't holding him up. Nick looked at him in shock, "What the fuck?!" he said to himself, before Sam put his hands back over his head, and flipped back, bringing his feet up towards Nick's face. Nick put his arm up to guard, and the steel toed boots kicked hard, lifting Nick off the ground. Sam landed on his own feet, while Nick landed and staggered back. Nick shook his head clear, and looked at Sam. Sam had gotten back into his stance, and Nick followed suite. This time, Nick wasted no time waiting for Sam to come to him. He was a close range fighter, so Nick would just hold him at long range. Nick raised his left hand, keeping the wind canister as primary, and began to attack Sam. Sam crossed his arms in front of his head, leaned forward, and pushed himself forward, into the blast. Sam was struck by the beam of wind, but endured, letting the wind scatter off the arm guards. He leaned back, but got to take a step forward, and before Nick could recover from his sheer astonishment, Sam lunged forward again. He almost got too close, but Nick leaned back, taking a step back with his right foot, and began swinging with his left hand. The swing clanged off Sam's arm guard, and the fire crystals in his palm glowed. The blades on the back of his gauntlet caught fire, and he also began swinging at Nick. The exchanged blows for a few seconds, each guarding and ducking and even leaping over the other's attacks. Sam's claws were strong, and the exo-skeleton just seemed to make him even more so. Nick had trouble keeping up, swinging his sword downward in front of himself to guard a jab.

He made a wide arced slash to force Sam to take a step back, then raised his left hand, "BACK OFF NOW!" he blasted Sam, who flew back a couple feet. Sam recovered quick and jumped back a few more feet. He then reached back and pulled the curved spikes from his back. He held the left blade back-hand, and the right, fore-hand.

He charged at Nick, swinging in huge arcs, easily turning himself in quick circles, bringing the blades to bare against Nick, who turned serious. He hadn't gone all out in a long time. He brought forth his skills, pushing himself. He remembered the fight with Leif. He remembered coordinating with Jay to get Nick an opportunity to grab him. He remembered giving up that chance for Sasha...Sasha...He remembered the kiss...Her hand...He reached for everything he could, even more than he had against Leif or the Manticore. Even for a spar, this man was everything Jay said he was. He was certainly worthy of being the leader of his team. Nick pushed himself, clashing blades over and over again, sparks flying from them as they crashed together. Sam used his fire dust crystals to block the beam attacks from Nick's arm as they kept attacking. At this point, they stayed in a static position, neither willing to budge an inch, trying to push the other. They couldn't give in. Each needed knew why they were here. They knew what they wanted, and they took it seriously. The fight came to a head when Nick made an especially risky move, swinging downward, and opening his left palm to try and blast at Sam for cover. It didn't work. Sam's blow to Nick's chest knocked him off his feet. He had dropped the sword and was careful to strike where the gauntlet wouldn't slice Nick's chest open. Nick landed on his back three feet away. Sam caught the scimitar-like sword and jumped over to Nick, pinning him down and placing the blade at Nick's neck. They did follow the rule stating that there isn't a winner until one can't fight, or an overwhelming victory is assured. But as quick as Sam was, his reflexes weren't enough to stop Nick from raising his sword and pushing against Sam's neck as he came down on Nick's. Sam's face looked shocked that Nick had managed that. Nick smiled with satisfaction. Sam slowly stood up off of Nick's chest, and Nick let him. Sam clipped the scimitars back onto his back plate and the poles folded back into his small backpack. As it did, he removed a gauntlet and reached down to help Nick up. When he stood, they kept their hands locked a couple seconds longer, shaking hands after a great sparring match. It was just protocol, and each felt the other deserved it. Nick sheathed his sword and they went over to the benches that were on the edge of the room, attached to the walls. They sat down, watching the others' matches. Nick couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment. He'd have to show Jay his gratitude later...He'd never fought Jay like that. Jay, he thought of as perhaps a good friend, maybe even a best friend...But Sam...This was a guy he could only call a rival...

* * *

Rachel pulle her whip, The Medigo Indiana, off of the back of her belt. She gripped the handle and released the coils. The whip unfurled to be three meters, just as Jay said it did. She raised the handle and opened a small diamond shaped hatch at the head of the handle and pulled the crystal out of the slot. Then Rachel pulled one of the dust crystals that she'd received from Mickey and fitted it into the slot. She clicked the hatch closed and the whip shook a little. Rachel stood with her left foot forward, and pulled her hand back. Sasha reached up and pulled her claymore from the sheath. She held it, handle in her right hand, barrel in her left, pointing the head towards Rachel. They stood silently facing eachother. Sasha wasn't quite sure about this though. She felt something odd, and she wasn't sure what it was. But for now...She put her head to the fight. Rachel lashed out towards Sasha. Sasha would have none of it though, and immediately raised the shotgun. The shot struck the bulb on the end of the whip, but it didn't rip or go through. Instead, the shot pinged off as though it had hit a heavy metal and whip recoiled. Rachel swung the whip handle around her head and cracked it out again. The length of the whip didn't strike her, but instead contracted, then at the whipping motion, stretched out again to lash at Sasha. Sasha applied her strength now, lifting the blade by only the handle, and swinging. The blade edge couldn't cut the whip though, just knocked it back. Rachel smiled as she struck out one more time. Sasha lifted her Loachsamhail to block the attack with the flat of the blade. The whip head struck the blade...Sasha gasped at the impact, which knocked her back off her feet. Sasha landed on er back and lifted her blade off of herself, and looked at Rachel, who still stood in the same place. She had pulled her arm back, and was throwing it forward, whipping towards Sasha again. Sasha rolled over to dodge the whip, which struck the ground where she'd been with a mighty CRACK, and left a tiny crater in the spot, which scattered a small amount of earth dust. Sasha realized what was happening...And it was exactly what Jay had said.

Sasha stood up, "You could've just killed me had that hit my chest!" Sasha screamed.

"I suspected you'd block or dodge. And low and behold...You did." Rachel replied. Sasha gritted her teeth, and screamed profanities in her head. But then she stopped, recalling what Jay had said about her...What was his metaphor...'The Goldilocks Zone' thing. Sasha turned and ran, trying to put as much distance between her and Rachel as possible. Rachel looked after her in shock, then realized what she was doing. She began to run after her, but Sasha turned and stopped, pointing the gun at her. Rachel also stopped, and raised her whip again. Sasha began shooting, hoping to take her chance to use that whip, but Rachel lashed out in her defense, knocking the shots from their path, scattering them. Sasha didn't let up, shooting and shooting. But she knew that she only had 30 shots...She was quickly approaching limit of her clip. She pulled out more of her strength, and lifted the blade in only one hand, so she could reach back and collect a new clip from her belt.

She had almost pulled it out, but Rachel saw her reaching back...And wouldn't let this go on. She stopped her own onslaught and ducked under one of her shots. Sasha flinched, and hesitated to pull the new clip. She only had two shots left anyway, so she continued. But Rachel had lunged forward, and lashed out with one particularly viscous attack. Sasha pulled the clip out, as the whip wrapped around Sasha's hand and the handle. The dust in the whip's flexible material shifted so that the whip would stay wrapped, and block the clip from ejecting. Rachel tried to yank on the whip, tired to pull Loachsamhail free from her grip, but Sasha's strength was too great, and she held tight, crouching slightly and putting one foot forward, anchoring herself in place. They stood, facing eachother, neither relinquishing their grip. Rachel began to walk forward, and he whip retracted as she did, so the the grip would stay tight. Sasha's eyes widened at this...

Her thoughts raced, and she muttered silently, so as to not let Rachel hear her, "Damn...I've got five seconds at best...And only two shots...That's...Four moves, maybe five, to use the two shots, pull free, and restock." she finished...She knew what she'd do. Rachel had stopped moving, and began to slowly pull back her arm. If Sasha couldn't stop this move, she wouldn't get the chance...She knew that. But...Sasha ran towards Rachel, trying to give herself slack to move the blade. Rachel hesitated, and Sasha used that moment. Raising her blade, she took one shot. Rachel dodged back, letting the shot miss. But Sasha hadn't intended to hit her. Sasha's second shot...Hit the small hatch that held the dust crystal. The hatch cracked open and the crystal flew out, with a crack in it's side. Without the earth dust, the whip loosened and fell from Sasha's grip. Sasha had gotten close enough now, and slashed at Rachel's chest, before she had stood back up straight. Rachel had to lean all the way back, putting her hands to the floor and flipping back on them, landing back on her feet. Sasha raised the blade, and the clip was ejected. Sasha pulled the new clip as Rachel pulled out a new earth crystal. Clip and hatch slammed into place on their weapons and they jumped back, putting more distance between them. Rachel began to lash out, and Sasha ran, not back, but around. Rachel tried to whip out in front of her, but Sasha stopped short as the whip hit the ground before her. Sasha pointed the blade and shot towards her, and Rachel pulled the whip back and used it to parry the shots. She took a chance at a gap to lash out, and Sasha dodged, jumping forward diagonally, trying to gain ground, but Rachel didn't let her, instead taking steps back as Sasha came towards her. Rachel and Sasha had taken to look at eachother with seriousness, not treating this as a spar...They wanted too win. Sasha couldn't help but feel the same as she did then, when she fought Jay, and wanted to show Rachel what she was capable of...And Rachel...This wasn't a show of power to her. She simply wanted to win...Not for glory, not to put Sasha in her place...But because she felt something...She hadn't fought like this in a long time...She hadn't attacked with this ferocity in such an age...She and it was great to her. They attacked mercilessly...But Sasha didn't feel quite right...Why was she attacking like this?...This girl she'd just met...Why was she being so...Forceful towards her. It didn't matter. This was a match to understand her opponent...No, her ally, better. That's what she'd do.

Sasha ran at Rachel, forsaking long range attacks. Rachel lashed out, trying to stop her. Sasha dodged right over a strike, and jumped over a swing, while continuing to move closer to Rachel. Rachel stepped back, only to find the wall. She slammed her palm against the small hatch containing the earth crystal, which began to glow furiously. As it did, so did the small bulb on the end of the whip. Rachel pulled her arm back as far as she could, and lashed out at Sasha one last time...This blow would finish the match...If Rachel hit, Sasha would go down, that was for sure...But if she missed, Sasha would easily get in close, and pinned to the wall with that giant demon of a sword, Rachel would be finished...Or at least, overwhelming victory would be assured. Sasha watched the whip move...She remembered the way Iskelle moved, and it reminded her a bit of the whip...She smiled...This match was over. Sasha jumped up as high as she could, and used the weight of the blade to swing herself around in the air, letting the whip swish under her. The whip cracked and struck the ground where Sasha had been when she leaped up. The ground was smashed to bits, leaving a relatively larger hole where she was...Sasha frowned as she landed before Rachel, bringing the blade down towards her... With her strength, Sasha could easily bring the blade right through Rachel's entire body. But she stopped short. She would save that...For her real foes. Rachel stared in shock at the blade, which hung an inch from her head. Sasha pulled it away, and sheathed it on her back. Rachel slumped to the ground. Sasha looked at her a moment before walking over to her, and offering her hand. But Rachel brushed it away, standing up on her own. She collected her whip and placed it on her belt.

"Good match..." Sasha muttered.

"Likewise." Rachel said in return. They both stared at eachother for a minute or two longer. Then they walked over to the benches, where Sam and Nick had sat, and sat down...There was a tension between the two of them that they both felt, but neither spoke on or in. 'This isn't over.' Rachel thought...Sasha thought the same thing, and they sat in a viscous silence as they watched the last training match finish up.

* * *

Anna and Jay stood side by side, facing the Dragoon twins. Jay stood with his arms crossed, a serious look on his face. Anna stood glancing back and forth between him and the twins, wondering if perhaps she should follow Jay's lead, or draw her weapon. She decided it best to draw, and pulled her axe from her back. She held it out in her stance, and Jay looked sideways at her, before returning his attention to the twins. They had taken their batons, Tia's Gemini Pollux and Chris' Gemini Castor, out the sheaths on their shoulders, and had ejected the dust crystals from the bottom, and had just finished replacing them. They both stood in an identical stance, except mirrored on either side. Crouched down with one of hand held out, and the other crossed over their chest. Jay's eyes turned gold as he watched them, and he uncrossed his arms, crouching down slightly, keeping his arms ready to pull out his Photos and Umbra.

The twins looked at eachother, "Why don't you draw your weapon...We're ready to fight." They said together.

Jay didn't flinch, "I will retrieve them when I need them. I don't pull them out immediately. It may sound condescending, but I prefer to feel out the water before I determine whether or not I need my weapons." he explained with a straight face. The twins looked at eachother again. Anna had never really understood why he didn't draw his weapon, but now that he explained it, it seemed a bit foolish...Without his weapons, he could be defeated before the match even began...But then again, with those eyes of his, maybe it was a sound tactic...He could let the opponent make their moves, get a good idea of their style, then draw and fight accordingly. Still, she preferred to not wait to draw her weapon. When Anna held her axe, it made her feel more confident. She felt stronger, and could go into the fight right off with that strength. The twins began to move, slowly at first, walking towards them, keeping their stances, then they broke into a run, crouching and moving at high speeds. Anna gripped her axe tighter, and moved forward to attack them. Jay saw her move forward and followed, keeping back a bit. Anna spun on her heel and brought her axe down on Tia, who put her batons up to block. Chris came in to Tia's side, ready to strike at Anna, but Jay intervened, putting his arms up to block the strike. Chris was deceptively strong though, and Jay gasped at the force. It didn't break his arms though, so Jay threw his arms out, pushing Chris back. Suddenly, Jay was struck from behind, as Tia hammered at him with one of her own batons. The blow knocked the air from Jay's lungs, and he feel forward. Anna looked over at Jay, and back at Tia. Tia noticed Anna's look, and hesitated a moment. Anna used that opportunity to lash out with a kick from the left, knocking Tia off her feet. Chris was moving back towards Jay, who stood, still not reaching for his weapons. Chris raised an eyebrow as Jay stood, and he began to swing at him. Jay moved back, farther and farther, watching carefully.

"Why don't you draw your weapons? That blow wouldn't have been as tough had you used them to defend..." Chris gasped out in between swings. Jay continued to dodge back this way and that, until he saw an opening, and struck Chris in his right shoulder, stopping his attacks and knocking him back. Chris stumbled, but stayed on his feet. Jay smiled, "**Now **I draw my weapons." he said as he reached back for his tonfas.

Chris saw this, and attempted to stop him, swinging his baton and throwing a bolt of electricity. Jay simply moved to the side a little, letting the bolt strike his left shoulder. The electricity dissipated, and Chris's eyes widened as Jay pulled out his tonfas and held them up in his stance, arms crossed over his chest.

He smirked, "This coat was a gift from someone before I began travels in very dangerous territory. It's insulated against heat, electricity, and cold." Jay explained.

Chris frowned, "What, is it bullet-proof too?" he said sarcastically, and attacked Jay again.

Jay didn't dodge this time, instead blocking the heavy blows that Chris came at him with. Electricity buzzed off of the tonfas, and Jay flinched as it touched his bare hands...'I should get a pair of gloves,' he thought as he blocked over and over. Neither of them tired, and they weaved around eachother. Chris was trying to return to his twin, but Jay wouldn't let him, continuing to draw back his attention with strikes and sweeping kicks that caused him to have to jump back, after which he'd push back at Jay with a storm of attacks through which Jay endured, spinning his tonfas on his arms and blocking the electric attacks. Jay's hands had begun to numb from the electricity though, and he wasn't sure how long he'd be able to hold out. Behind him, Anna and Tia continued going at it as well. Tia struck out, but without Chris with her, she was no match for Anna's close combat. Anna's wide range covering spin attacks hammered Tia back, ruined her attempts at recovery. Tia struck at Anna, who used the body of the staff to divert the blow, throwing her off balance, but she quickly rolled forward under Anna's slash, and began to move towards her brother. Chris and Jay continued to move circles around eachother, each unable to stop the other, or get past them. Anna looked back at Tia, and tried to run after her. Tia and Anna were just about even in speed, however, and Anna couldn't catch her. So instead, she reared back, and threw her axe at Tia. The axe spun through the air towards Tia. Chris, who was facing Jay, noticed Anna make this move, and his eyes turned the same light blue as his hair, differing from their greenish color. At the same moment, Tia saw through his eyes, and saw the axe coming towards her. She stopped, turned, and blocked the axe with her batons. The axe stopped as Anna caught up, and grabbed it in her hands before it fell to the ground. Tia jumped away from Anna as she began her attacks again. Anna ran to the side, to stand in between her and Jay and Chris. Tia continued moving back, and began to swing at Anna, who switched her weapon to long-sword form, and slashed away the small balls of fire dust Tia was throwing. Tia wasn't sure what she'd do...Anna was an incredible fighter, and Tia couldn't match her. Even her long range attacks weren't effective. Anna charged her, keeping her Felemina Fattale in long-sword form, switching from the large spin motion style of her poleaxe to a more focused attack style, and it wasn't that making things any easier for Tia. Anna's strikes became precise and full of strength, and Tia continued backing up, not even having the opportunity to pass her. Her eye's flashed light blue, and her twin saw her struggling. Chris attacked Jay more furiously now, trying to get him to back off a little. But Jay's golden eyes saw his moves. He had stopped trying to block, hoping to get an edge, and instead had spun the tonfas to have the bodies faced outward, and shot at Chris instead, using just his arms to defend when he couldn't dodge. Chris tried to move Jay aside, but he Jay's shots continued to put him off, as Jay moved him back. They struck at eachother's weapons, Chris swinging the batons around his arms to strike Jay's tonfa, which swung back to its original position, knocking the baton up into the air. Chris kicked low, and Jay jumped over his attack and as he landed, Chris jumped up himself, catching the baton in the air and bringing it down hard on Jay. He blocked the attack and let the tonfa spin around to strike Chris, who defended himself from even that. Chris was getting impatient. His sister needed help against Anna's strength, and here he was, separated from her by the fighter with the golden eyes. What could he do to gain an advantage? Then it struck him...He and his sister still had an advantage. He backed up a few steps. Jay let him, stepping tentatively towards him and taking his stance, hoping to force him to keep a little more distance from his sister. Chris closed his eyes. At the same time, his sister did the same, dodging out of Anna's range and crossing her batons out in front of her, standing carefully, ready to move. She also closed her eyes. Anna paused, unsure of what Tia was doing. She switched her sword back to axe form, and held it in her original stance, waiting for Tia's move.

Chris and Tia opened their eyes at the same moment. Jay crossed his arms over his chest. Anna readied herself to start her spin attacks. Chris and Tia both turned away from their respective opponent's for a moment, glancing at their twin's opponent instead. Jay saw it and his eyes widened...He knew what was going on. The twins turned back to the fights at hand, and moved towards their foe. Jay moved to meet Chris, who swung at Jay with his bolts of lightning. Jay frowned and stopped, blocking the blows with his coat. Tia glanced at Jay's back...Chris came up on Jay's right, swinging with one baton, and jabbed at his left leg with his other. Jay blocked one attack, but had to step right to avoid the jab. Tia glanced over again at Jay's back, and Chris swung, forcing Jay to block the attack with his left tonfa. Chris removed his baton from Jay's right, and turned on his heel, striking Jay again on the left while he was still off balance, and with both batons this time. Jay was thrown to his right and he landed hard on his side. Chris used the opportunity to run towards Tia.

Jay stood and ran after him, "ANNA, LOOK OUT!" he shouted. Anna, who was holding Tia in place with her attacks, stopped and looked back, seeing Chris moving towards her, Jay on his tail. Anna quickly had to turn back to Tia, who hadn't hesitated to move in towards Anna as she looked away. Tia came in towards her, and struck at her. Anna had to hold the staff of the poleaxe close to herself to block, which made it difficult for her to stay steady and counter. Anna tried to step back, but Tia pursued, and Chris had thrown a few bolts. Anna turned away from Tia to block the bolts, but when the struck the body of her axe, the electricity buzzed down the metal, and Anna flinched, nearly dropping her axe from the pain, 'I'm definitely getting gloves,' she thought. Chris had to turn to block Jay's shot, but he had gotten close to his sister again. His sister used her opportunity while Anna was stunned from Chris's bolts, and slammed her batons into Anna's shoulders. She fell to her knees at the force of the blow. The batons lit up with fire dust, and Anna felt them burn through her clothes. Tia stopped quickly though, not wanting to hurt her. Anna fell to the ground, and Tia leaped over her, regrouping next to her twin. Jay immediately jumped back. He looked over at Anna...He remembered that day, when his upper body was burned by the demon with red eyes...He felt the heat on his chest, even now. He looked back at the twins, and crossed his arms over his chest...The stance he had taken ever since then...The stance that he had used since he lived through his encounter, and had gotten stronger with...It was instinct at this point. Jay watched them take up their identical stance again. He looked at Anna again. He couldn't win without help...This had gone downhill very quickly, and Jay hoped he could hold these two long enough for Anna to get back up. They both lunged at Jay, still with their eyes light blue. He smirked. At the very least, their Semblances were active...The more they used their skills, their aura, the more clearly he could track their movements...

Anna started awake and tried to push herself to her knees. Her shoulders burned, and she couldn't see very clearly. She blinked a couple of times and grabbed her axe, which was still under her. She came to her feet, and looked forward. Her eyes widened slightly at what she saw...Jay stumbled and fell forward, dropping Photos and Umbra. He was breathing heavily and put his palms to the ground. Before him, stood Christopher and Tia Dragoon. They both looked like they had bruises on them. She pushed herself to her feet, and the sound of her axe dragging against the ground caught Chris and Tia's attention. They looked back at Anna, who was gripping her axe in her palms, trying to take her mind from the heat she felt on her shoulders. Jay's heavy breathing was interrupted as he jumped up suddenly, trying to take the opportune distraction Anna had caused. Tia looked back to him, her eyes still light blue. Chris saw through her eyes, and saw the move Jay was making. He immediately shoved her out of the path of Jay's right hand. Jay's left, gripping Umbra, slammed into Chris's stomach. He was shoved back and stumbled, falling on his back. Jay's right hand had continued moving, throwing his body to the right. Jay fell onto his right side and groaned. Tia watched her brother on the ground, curling up, clutching his stomach and moaning. Tia's eyes faded back to their green color, and she looked at Anna, who was doing her best to keep on her feet. Anna thought for a moment, and looked down at her axe. She and Tia looked at eachother again for a minute. Anna then shook her head, and carefully placed her poleaxe against the wall.

"We surrender..." she said. Tia looked over at her brother, and ran over to help him up. He groaned as she did. Anna went over to Jay and did the same, although she was barely able to stand herself. She and the twins went over to the benches. Both Tia and Anna looked over and saw all of the rest of their teams watching them with rapt attention. Sam started clapping. Anna turned red as she helped Jay sit down. She sat on his right, and Tia sat to Chris's left, next to her. They looked over at eachother once again, and Anna offered her hand. "You two really are incredible. It was a great spar..." she said to Tia, who was a little surprised as she took Anna's hand.

"Sorry about the burn...You two were really something too...I couldn't get past you, and I don't think my brother's ever struggled that much against an opponent...And that guy was resilient as hell when he faced the both of us...He held on longer than most are able..." she said, hoping to mimic Anna's kindness. She was hoping they'd be friends.

Jay groaned and muttered, "Next time...I'll-..." he couldn't finish his sentence though, as the world spun slightly. Anna looked back at Tia after being distracted by Jay's muttering.

She looked apologetic, "Sorry...He's arrogant sometimes, but he's really a good person. He cares about his position as leader, and takes it quite seriously...Perhaps too seriously sometimes...And he's a real force in battle. The reason he wanted to face you was because he wanted to pit his Sight against your Shared Vision." she said.

Tia nodded, "Still, you were the force there. You really know that axe..." Tia said.

Anna turned a little red again, "Yeah, it's been my weapon for as long as I can remember...I love it alot...You guys have some pretty powerful weapons yourself." Anna told her, then looked over at the others. Sam was talking to Nick over on the other bench, and Sasha and Rachel sat in that same tense silence. Anna turned back to Tia, and they continued talking for a few minutes, as Jay and Chris continued groaning...That's all that happened for the next ten minutes...But all of them were content at this...After all, the whole point of this was to get to know their ally team.

* * *

After their spars, the teams decided they would return to the dorms. Nick and Sam shook hands again. Rachel and Sasha separated without a word. Anna, Jay, and the twins shook hands before they parted as well. Jay walked in the back of the group, trying to keep it that way. Nick and Sasha were talking about their matches with eachother, with their hands again sewn together. Anna looked back at Jay, who walked with his head down and hood up, hands behind his back. After looking back at Sasha and Nick, she stopped a moment to let him catch up, and walked beside him.

"Something wrong? Your fight with the twins...It wasn't that humil-"

"I wasn't humiliated, nor am I now. They were simply far more formidable than I was alone. Their skill won out, and I must think over the fight in order to identify my mistakes. That's how it works." he interrupted her. She wasn't quite sure what to say. He didn't sound like he'd be accepting of any words of comfort. Jay cleared his throat, "I was observing your technique during the fight...You have excellent skill, and I believe had mine been a match for yours, perhaps we'd have proven a match for them. This was an oversight on my part, and I would like to correct it." he went on. Anna frowned a bit and looked over at him. He was nearly six inches taller than she was, and she had to look up to see his face.

"Correct it how? I'm not sure my skill is all that you think it is...I have no capacity for long range at all, and-"

"And you make up for that with high agility, and a wide defensive array. Your statement is incorrect. To the contrary, you have more skill than you believe. I think it would be advantageous for us to become a better tag team. I'd like to be able to overcome those two at least once, and thinking about the team, it would seem that you're the most fitting person to have in combat with those two." Jay spoke in odd circles with that little speech, but Anna thought she understood the meaning.

"Are you saying you'd like to train more with me?..." she asked, almost stuttering out the words, trying to keep a steady voice.

"Yes, I believe that's the best course of action." he responded. Anna wasn't sure how to respond. They'd reached their dorm however, and Nick and Sasha had already gone inside. Anna grabbed Jay's arm before he went in. He turned to her, his hood coming off, and pulled his arm free. "Please do not touch me. I don't like people touching me. It's quite annoying." he said, gripping the arm that she hadn't grabbed, but at the spot where she'd grabbed his other arm.

Anna felt a little taken aback, "Oh...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to annoy you." she muttered.

"It's alright, just remember not to in the future if you don't mind." he responded, trying to compose himself, and pushing his glasses up on his nose.

"I just wanted to ask...Why me? Surely you'd make a better tag team with Nick..." she asked. Jay considered this a moment.

"Yes, I did consider Nick. But you have some advantages over him. For instance, you're much much stronger at close range. You're lighter, and more agile, giving you a better ability to combat the twins speed and power. Plus, I think he's a better opponent for Samuel anyway. They seem to get along well. As for Sasha...They'd crush her. Her claymore is simply not equipped to deal with their double-sided attacks. As you can see, that leaves only one option that has every advantage needed." he explained.

"And that's me?...Are you sure?" Anna asked, still not quite positive of what he was saying.

"Quite sure. Those two are...Well, quite frankly, they're an incredibly dynamic team, but I'm confident that if we work together, we can match them." he said. His eyes turned gold for a moment, and Anna didn't see the slightest trace of red.

She smiled, "Ok then...I'd be happy to work with you."

"Good." Jay said simply, turning and opening the door and walking into their room. Anna followed him in, but when she did, she saw Sasha sitting on her bed and staring at her, with an odd smile on her face. Anna's eyes widened a little, and she also smiled a little. Trying to hide it, she went over to her ladder and climbed into her hammock.

The next day, the team went down to the training room early. Jay was careful to drag them all out so that they'd get extra time to prepare themselves. When they did arrive, Jay dragged Anna to one of the rings and they practiced their abilities as tag team partners. Nick and Sasha were content to sit down and wait for their ally team, as it was mostly Jay who wanted to get ahead anyway.

As they watched, Sasha nudged at Nick, "Is it just me, or is he-"

"Oblivious as all-living fuck? No, that's the way he is..." Nick interrupted. Sasha shook her head and continued watching their movements. They continued until later in the morning, when Team SCRT arrived. The twins walked over to where Anna and Jay were standing, and they greeted Anna. Jay stood passively, and after greeting Anna, the twins both looked at him. Jay made no move. Chris did, however, offering Jay his hand. He hesitated at first, but shook it anyway, if only because they were allies.

"You've got a mean swing, you know..." he muttered, trying to sound friendly. He wasn't sure it worked. Tia faced him and offered her hand as well.

He took it, but before he released his grip, he muttered to her as well, "Try and tone down the flames next time...Those burns are hell." Tia's eyes raised in question. Nick got up, and tried to compete with Sam as to who could crush more of the other's ribs with a hug. Nick was happy to use his arm, and won easy. Rachel and Sasha said nothing.

"Ok! Round two. Let's go then..." Sam said out-loud. The twins went over to the same ring they were in yesterday, and Jay and Anna faced them. Today, Jay didn't wait to draw out Photos and Umbra. He also made the first move, and Anna followed him for support. Rachel and Sasha didn't speak before pulling out their weapons and lashing out at eachother. It slightly worried both Nick and Sam, seeing them be so viscous towards eachother. But they paid it no mind and began their own spar. Not much changed from the day before, except for a tie between Sasha and Rachel. After they'd all beaten eachother senseless for an hour or two, they left to the same conference room that they had been in for their first meeting. Sam had gone to Ozpin and had it reserved for their meetings. Once there, Jay filled them in on everything he'd found out about them from the old records. There wasn't much information, so he could only tell them about their grades and teacher's remarks. But as he did, this gave everyone a clear picture of their skills. Although these could've changed, it still gave them something to go on. The next day after their spars, when they went to their room, they were greeted by Headmaster Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch, who informed them that they had successfully captured one of the enemy camera drones, and felt confident they could trace it back to it's origins within the week. That gave them the next three days to prep.

Jay was a bit disturbed by the information. He started insisting the teams sleep more, and train more. They would be ready for this when the time came, and Jay wold make sure of that. Nick didn't really like it, but he also understood why Jay was doing this, so he went along with it. On the second to last day, Jay and Anna successfully tied the twins in a fight, which was a huge accomplishment for them. The team laughed and clapped as Jay took Anna's hand and raised it up along with his own, in mock pride. Jay was happy because it meant real progress. Perhaps they'd be ready for Leif and Iskelle after all. On the final day, Ozpin stopped the teams at the door and instead took them straight to the conference room, where there was a hologram projector set up, and lines of chairs for the eight of them. After being seated by officials in Beacon uniform, Ozpin began the mission briefing. Beacon had tracked down, with the bug, an incredible sized facility in the deep Forever Fall. Jay shuttered a little...He remembered the deep F.F. well. Heat scoping didn't work on the facility, so it was well built, and well defended. They estimated near 130 hands could be present, and well armed. They were to be brought in in separate groups, one taking a path by the river, and another two teams going in through the front and the last two going in through a back entrance. If they needed to make such an entrance by hand, so be it.

Ozpin went on to explain that they'd be separated into teams and before he began Jay interrupted, "Sir, would it not be best for us to determine the teams ourselves?" Ozpin shook his head.

"We will be assigning your teams based on your recent progress, which we've been keeping track of...And besides, you're first years. You're quite lucky to be participating in this mission at all." Jay wasn't quite satisfied with this, but shut up anyway.

Professor Goodwitch took over from there, "The teams will be as follows: Nick and Sasha. Samuel and Rachel. Christopher and Tia. Jay and Anna." she said.

"And what exactly are these teams based on? By recent progress, shouldn't Nick be teamed with Sam and Sasha with Rachel?" he interrupted, still a little unsure.

"Our information would say that Sasha and Rachel wouldn't work well together. And that leaves these teams the only good options." Jay glanced sideways at Anna, and they both looked over at Sasha and Rachel, who were still sitting next to eachother. They both wore a scowl and they looked back at eachother.

"Understood," Jay said as he and Anna realized just what she was talking about. The mission would begin early, at 7:00 am. When the meeting ended, the teams went about for the rest of the day to prepare themselves. They would all go to sleep at about 7:00 pm that night, or at least Sam thought that to be fitting. After a few minutes of going about doing their business, they all met in the gym to train or just practice a little more. But Jay didn't meet them there. So to compensate, the twins alternated just practicing with Anna, instead of sparing. She wanted to go and look for him, but decided against it. Instead, Team JNAS found Jay already in the dorm when they returned. They asked him what he had been doing, but he said nothing. Instead they all got ready for bed. They'd need their rest for tomorrow...


	4. Chapter 4 Operation

Iskelle paced impatiently in the middle of the room. Leif sat around, facing away from the computer, the only other thing in the room besides the door, and watched Iskelle walk this way and that. He hated when she paced. It always showed she was angry or anxious, and neither of them was a good thing.

"Two days, Leif. Two days since they found that bug. Thirds the charm. You. Are. A. DUMBASS!" she shouted in anger. He rolled his eyes. It didn't matter what she said. "You should've let me kill them when we had the chance." she said, ringing her hands through her hair.

"Oh really? And left four dead bodies for Beacon? We wouldn't have had time to clean it up, and if we killed them, we'd have just had to leave them there. They haven't found any of the other bodies, Iskelle. If we'd left **children** dead, they'd have brought down every resource they had on our heads." he said, still calm.

"But think about the alternative! We let those kids go, and now they've given Beacon information about us...INFORMATION THAT LEAD TO THE CAPTURE OF OUR CAM DRONE! If they were dead, they'd never have known...We could've gotten out of here before they found us, and left this facility to blow the minute they entered. But nooooo." she finished sarcastically.

"Think about that, Iskelle. He wouldn't have let us blow this place up, we have far too many resources stored here...That's why we had to build it in the Forever Fall forest...That and the infinite access to Grimm." Leif said. He leaned back in his chair. "Besides, you shouldn't worry...I already sent Him a report about the situation. He's coming over...Today." Leif muttered. Iskelle's eye widened, and she fell to her knees. She put her hands over her eyes and rubbed them, then moving her hands to her forehead. Leif stood and walked over, kneeling next to her. She tried to hit him, wave him away, but he didn't budge, and put his arm over her shoulder. "It's ok, remember...He won't kill us. There's no one to replace us, and you know that...We killed them all to make sure of that. We're his strongest. I have a feeling that those kids are going to insist they go on the mission to hunt us down. We'll finish them this time...And if we don't...He will...For now, we've already prepped this place for their arrival. Don't worry..." Leif said in his best comforting voice. Iskelle looked at him, still trying to feign anger, but then leaned her head on his chest.

"Yeah...You're right...We won't die today...We'll finish what we started with those kids...The data transfer is almost complete, right?...We'll be out of here before they can launch another attack..." She stood up with Leif.

"Then let's get ready...Who knows when they'll arrive..." The large metal doors slid open in front of them, and slid shut behind them, as they went to ready the facility.

* * *

Teams JNAS and SCRT had woken early, and after a good breakfast, had gone to their launch point, near the river in the Forever Fall. Headmaster Ozpin greeted them when they got there.

"I do hope you're ready. There's no turning back." he muttered. Everyone stayed silent. None of them had ever had any intention of turning back. They had grouped into their teams already, and stood as Beacon officials walked around, handing each of the teams a small dufflebags. Nick opened the bag the bag he was given.

"Fire dust charges?" he said, looking at Ozpin.

"Plus ice dust charges and lightning dust charges." Goodwitch corrected him. Nick zipped the bag again and put it over his shoulder, holding it like a backpack. Sam did the same, as did Jay, and Tia with their own bags. A small motorboat was tied to the riverbank, with Beacon officials ready to drive it.

"One of you teams will be taking the river path, which the facility uses for a water source. Who will that be?" Ozpin asked, sipping his coffee. Jay wasted no time in stepping forward. Anna noticed that and stepped forward with him.

"We'll be taking the river path." Jay said.

"Very well. The rest of you will be delivered, on hovercraft, as close to the facility as we can get without being noticed. You'll decide what to do from their. Remember, your objective is to simply rout the enemy. Clear the facility, and bring Leif Malladus and Iskelle Femmaren in. We'd prefer them alive, if you can manage it." he said, looking at Nick and Sasha. They both rolled their eyes. Jay and Anna walked over and stepped into the boat. A large hovercraft, looking like nothing more then a platform, came silently up next to the rest of the teams. They all stepped on, and the hovercraft flew off through the trees. Ozpin turned to Jay and Anna as the boat started up, remaining quiet because of the dust propulsion system. He nodded, and the boat went away along the river. Jay and Anna sat down on the seats near the front of the boat. They waited as and watched in silence as they moved swiftly past the trees.

Jay cleared his throat, "Anna, remember today...Whatever we face, whoever we face...Be careful...Don't die." he muttered. Anna looked at him, though he hadn't looked at her.

"Thanks...You too." she said back. The rest of the ride was spent in silence, as the river turned this way and that, going around one of the cliff faces, where a few trees grew at odd angles out of the side. Jay frowned in silent consideration. After a few minutes of seeing him look this way and that, apparently looking for something he wasn't seeing, Anna spoke up, "Jay, is something wrong?"

Jay continued glancing around, "You could say that...Look around. Where are we?" he asked.

Anna shook her head, looking around with him, "I don't know...On a river? What does that have to do wit-"

"And what to you normally expect to see along rivers?" he interrupted. Anna frowned, and looked over at the river banks. She still wasn't quite sure what she was looking for.

Jay looked over at her, noting her confusion, "Ok, now look a little farther...Past the river bank... It's not what's there that you're looking for...It's what isn't. Think about where we are again...Where are we, Anna. What would you expect to see?" Jay said, still looking at her.

It was clear he was trying to lead her to a conclusion, and that conclusion suddenly struck Anna like a bullet, "Grimm! The Forever Fall, where are all the Grimm! she exclaimed, looking back at Jay.

Jay smiled, "Precisely. Where **are** all the Grimm? If the Grimm within a certain range of the facility have been cleared out, there are three conclusions you can draw. What are they?" he asked. Anna smiled, understanding what he was doing...He was trying to help calm her nerves.

She cleared her throat, "Ok...One would be that they...Went out and drove them off? Possibly put up some barrier?" she looked at him and he nodded, gesturing for her to continue. "Or they just killed them within a certain range...Or...Or they...Hm."

she put her hand under her chin, "Or they..." Jay coaxed. Anna thought...

But she thought the last conclusion was a little to weird, "Or they...Captured them?" she tried, although she wasn't sure that was right...She was sure that Jay had thought of some brilliant third option that she'd never think of.

He smiled, "Perfect. Yes. One, drove away, put up barriers to keep them away. Two, killed them all, used them as wards for others, which I know works, because I used to do it while travelling. Three, they're captured and just hidden away somewhere they can't do any harm...Or possibly for use as guards..." Jay said. Anna looked away, her face slightly red, her chest filled with pride that she'd succeeded in his challenge. The two sat in silence, continuing to contemplate these possibilities.

The hovercraft swished silently past the trees as the teams sat silently in a circle, waiting to get to their destination. Nick and Sasha were joking about Jay and Anna being alone together, and Sam and Rachel were laughing about something that no one could hear. The twins sat next to eachother, just watching the forest. Suddenly they both cleared their throats, getting everyone's attention. Everyone stopped talking and looked at the twins.

"So we should decide who's going to take the back entrance, and who's going in through the front door..." they said in unison. Sasha grabbed Nick's right arm and squeezed slightly, looking anxiously at the twins. Nick took her hand in his left instead, and put his right arm over her shoulder.

"I call going in through the front," Nick said.

Sam glanced at him, "So do I." he said quickly. Rachel frowned.

The twins looked at eachother, "So we're going in the back?" they said together. Sam frowned, "Hey guys, does it bother anyone else that they gave us dust charges? They want us to rout these guys, but why do we need explosives? They want the place intact, right? So why bombs?" he said.

Nick smiled, "Who cares, let's blow shit up. It'll help clear em out faster. And besides, who doesn't love blowing up dumb fuckers..." he said happily. Sam rolled his eyes.

"Ok, but the real question is what is this facility even for? What are they doing there? For what purpose do they need that place?" Rachel asked the group.

The twins looked at eachother, "Well maybe it's just a thought...But when you read or see things like that in movies and books, they're mostly Testing Facilities of some sort, right? Perhaps they're trying to make a weapon?" they said together.

"If that's the case...And we found such a weapon...Ozpin would expect us to bring it back...But he'd never be allowed to keep such a weapon in custody, the government would seize it...And I doubt Ozpin would like any weapon in the hands of any official." Sasha said.

"So is that the reason for the explosives, do you think? Do you think he'd want us to destroy any weapon we find?" Nick said.

Sam put his hand to his chin, "So just how far ahead of us **is** Ozpin in this operation...And why do you think he agreed to let us go on it anyway?" he said.

Nick smirked, "Oh, you can thank Jay for that...He has a gift for words...Given time, I don't doubt he could convince Ozpin to do anything he wanted him to do."

"I don't mean to offend anyone, but something's seriously wrong with that Jay...I've seen his eyes turn red in combat...It's disturbing." Chris said, without Tia.

Nick looked at Sasha, "Long story," he muttered. Everyone stayed silent for a moment.

Nick pulled open the scroll on his prosthetic arm, "We should be arriving at the drop off point soon." he said. Everyone stood, and pulled the dufflebags onto their back. The hovercraft came to a stop, and the teams stepped off. The hovercraft flew off, and the team started walking in the direction of their target.

* * *

Mickey turned the page in the book she was reading. Her legs were crossed, and the airship was flying smoothly, as usual, towards Beacon Academy. She knew the pilot of this ship very well. She was nice, and she and Mickey had been close friends for years...Well perhaps friend wasn't the right word for it. Alice would always help when she would take Mickey over to Beacon to do her deliveries or needed another favor. Today, she had a special package though. She looked at the seat next to her, where the basket was. Inside, she had two 2-liters of soda, one root beer and one coka-cola plus vanilla ice cream, kept cool by ice dust, and two pizzas, warmed by fire dust. Mickey smiled and went back to her book. She was no liar. She said she'd bring soda, pizza and ice cream if her team went a week without trouble, and it was a week today. So just as she said she would, she'd brought the goods. She tapped her foot slowly out of habit as she read. The ride wouldn't be long now. She'd done this hundreds of times and knew almost exactly how long it took. She heard the familiar change in the engine tone that signaled the airship slowing to the dock. She stood, and put the basket on her cart.

"Thanks Alice," she shouted back to the pilot.

"My pleasure, Mickey." she heard over the microphone. Mickey smiled as she exited the airship, which took off as the dock retracted back into the side of the cliff. She wheeled slowly through the halls, hoping not to encounter her team until she'd finished the deliveries. She opened classroom doors, carefully, glancing inside to see if they were in their before opening the door completely, content to interrupt classes to toss boxes of dust at their recipients. She greeted students she knew from her routes and even stopped to talk to one. But when she was finished, she kicked open the door to the dorm of Team JNAS...And they were gone. Mickey frowned. They weren't in any of the classrooms she passed, and she didn't see them in the halls...She decided to go to Headmaster Ozpin. He'd know where they were. She opened the door to his office and marched in.

"Ozpin, where's my team?" she demanded, putting her palms on the desk before him.

Professor Goodwitch, who stood next to him, came around the table to Mickey, "Your team. You refer to Team JNAS?" she asked.

Mickey frowned, "Yes. I refer to Team JNAS. Where are they? As far as I can tell, they aren't currently on campus." she said. Goodwitch turned to Ozpin. Ozpin said nothing for a few seconds. Mickey's heart began beating faster. "Ozpin, Where's Jay?" she said, less composed. Ozpin sipped his coffee again. Mickey was annoyed now, and slammed her fists against the table, causing tiny cracks to appear, "Where. Is. Team. JNAS." she demanded. Goodwitch pulled free her riding crop and slapped the table next to her hands. Mickey turned to her, "Don't mess with me Glynda. Where are they?" she said, still angry. She could feel her heart beating in her chest and worry had began to set in.

Ozpin stood up, "Team JNAS has joined Team SCRT on a joint mission into the Forever Fall forest. They are infiltrating a facility we've recently located, and are going to apprehend two persons of interest in the disappearances and suspected murders of several Beacon graduates. You should know, this is privileged information, and therefore you cannot" Ozpin was interrupted when Mickey reached over his desk, grabbed him by the collar and yanked him over to look him right in the eye. Goodwitch raised her riding crop as though getting ready to attack, but Ozpin put up his hand, discouraging her.

Mickey glared at him, "Why would you let them do that. You're talking about those two they encountered in the forest last time, aren't you...Those two poisoned my boy, and nearly killed their entire team. Why would you..." she stopped and released Ozpin's collar. He leaned back and straightened himself.

"They have been training hard, and are in the company of an ally team. I believe that they will be more than sufficient to handle this task." he tried to assure her. Mickey didn't know what she was hearing. She ran her hands through her hair in anxiety. Without another word, she turned and walked from the room. She took the basket and went back to their dorm. When she arrived, she opened the door, instead of kicking it open. She walked in and placed the basket on the bed next to her, and sat down. She put her face in her hands, elbows on her knees, not sure what she'd do if...If they didn't come back...

She sat, and muttered to herself, "Please...Be careful...And don't die..."

* * *

Nick raised his hand, motioning for the group to stop.

"According to Ozpin's map, the facility is 100 yards from here..." he whispered. Chris and Tia glanced at eachother,

"Roger. We'll be moving to our target now." they said in unison, both mocking a salute before jogging off into the forest. Sasha watched them go, then breathed out a sigh of relief.

"You don't seem to like the twins...Why ever not?" Rachel asked in a mocking voice. Sasha didn't respond, and turned back to the direction they were heading. Each of them did their best to stay quiet as they moved. Nick had closed his scroll back onto his arm in favor of just moving in the proper direction. After a few minutes of silently walking through the brush, they came to what they thought would be a clearing...They were wrong. There was a green building, painted to match the appearance of the trees around them. If it weren't for the buildings angular sides, it would be difficult to discern from the forest. On the roof, trees were growing upward to cloak its appearance from any airhsips flying overhead.

"Genius." Sam muttered.

They went up to the wall, and Rachel reached out to touch it, but Nick grabbed her arm, "No, don't!...This could be covered in sensors...If we can't just go touching..." he said.

Sasha looked sideways at him, "Aren't we just going to bomb our way in anyway?" she asked.

"Yes...But think about it...Jay would say the same if he were here. If they know we're here before we get in, then they have their advantage. If we bomb at random and don't get in right, then we take a huge step back, again handing them an advantage..." Nick said to Sasha. Sasha shrugged.

"Ok...So how would you proceed?" Sam asked.

"Well...The ex-thief in me says that most of the sensors that they use in walls are bio-sensitive...They sense stuff that's naturally made..." he reached out with his prosthetic arm, "So...It shouldn't detect my arm." he brushed the metal fingers lightly over the wall, focusing on his sense of touch.

Finally he found what he was looking for, a crease in the wall. He smiled and knocked lightly on the panel.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Rachel whispered angrily.

"Relax. This door is so hard to find in the first place. Plus, I wager that the sensor attach to a monitor somewhere...So if they don't detect us here, they aren't watching us. They don't need to guard an invisible door...They just need to watch it." Nick said, recalling his years as a thief, that was a cardinal rule. He remembered getting through plenty of heists because there was no security, only secret paths that no one but he could find. He reached for the dufflebag and pulled out one of the fire charges. They could be set to a timer, or detonated by heavy impact by throwing it. He placed it at the base of the door and set it to one minute. Then he calmly turned to his teammates and smiled. They all started moving to a safe distance from the bomb and turned to watch. Nick smiled and nudged Sasha as they watched. She glanced over at him, and he smiled at her, "Hey...Knock knock." he said as the bomb went off. The teams walked in through the whole in the wall, shielding their faces from the dust and earth as they did. The hall they entered was long, white, and ended in another door. They ran towards it, and Nick pulled out another charge, pressing the button on the top and tossing it. It struck the door with another explosion. An alarm started going off now, and as they came through the door, they almost tripped over the remains of two guards caught in the explosion. They stood in a small circular white room that led down two hallways. There were doors at intervals own the halls...Sam and Nick turned and nodded to one another. Then along with Sasha and Rachel, parted ways. Down the two halls, they heard scrambling and shouting as men came from the doors holding automatic machine guns. Nick and Sasha wasted no time pulling free her sword and raising his hand. One by one they fell as they went. Shocked to death by electric blasts from Nick's HopeBringer, or even burned to death by the same, otherwise shot dead by Sasha. On the other side, Sam's exo-skeleton had formed on himself and he was deftly moving around the shots, even up the walls to cut them down, moving around Rachel's whip, which lashed out around him, causing bloody destruction as she crushed skulls in and shattered ribs cages with each motion. Nick and Sasha turned to look back down the other hall at Sam and Rachel. They all gave eachother a thumbs up and ran down the turns, continuing to bring down the guards.

* * *

The boat came to a stop in front of a metal grating. The river ran under the building through here, and it would serve as a great entrance point. The official driving the boat had taken a grappling hook and thrown it around a tree to keep the boat in place. Jay and Anna stood, and looked into the grate. The river thinned here, and was deeper then it was wide. Jay reached into the dufflebag and pulled out an ice charge. He set it to about three seconds and dropped it over the side of the boat. It went off right as it struck the surface. The river carried through some of the dust as it froze, causing the surface of the river both around the boat, and all the way through the grate to freeze over. Jay and Anna stepped off of the boat onto the ice. Some of the water from the river was still flowing over the ice, but it was still thick enough to hold them, and most of the river water was flowing under the ice. Jay and Anna walked over to the grate itself. Jay wrapped a hand around one of the bars and tested it by giving it a tug.

"Pretty solid stuff...If we set a charge we could go back to the boat and get some distance away before it blew..." he muttered to Anna. She also gripped the bar, testing it's strength for herself, then putting her hand under her chin in consideration. Jay looked sideways at her, "What do you think?" he asked. She considered a few seconds more. Then she grabbed Jay's shoulder and shoved him back a bit. Jay looked at her in shock when he recovered, and Anna pulled her axe off of her back. With three quick swipes that appeared to have no effect, Jay walked over to stand next to her again. She placed her axe back into her sheath and looked at Jay. He raised an eyebrow at her as she raised her index finger dramatically. Slowly she reached over...And touched the metal grate. The grate fell apart, collapsing in pieces onto the ice on the other side of the grate. Jay's mouth fell open as Anna bowed dramatically twice, as if to a crowd's applause. Jay smiled and clapped a couple of times for her. Just then there was the sound of an explosion on the other side of the building. "Alright, that means we better get going." Jay said as he reached into the dufflebag and pulled out all the ice charges he could gather. They began walking under the building, tossing the ice charges as they went, forming a path.

Finally, they came to a large block in the path. The water continued flowing through a fine grate.

"Ok, it's a safe bet that this is the water filter...So..." Jay began to feel around in the tunnel above him until he found the hatch opening.

Anna nodded, "A service hatch...Things break, and they need to be able to access every angle of the machine to fix it...Wow..." she muttered as Jay jumped up slightly, pulling himself out of the tunnel. He reached down into the tunnel to help Anna up.

"I thought you hated touching people..." she pointed out.

Jay shook his head, "There's no time for my own foolish boundaries now, just take my hand..." he insisted. Anna smiled and reached up to grab hold of him. He easily pulled Anna's light frame up through the hatch.

"Wow...You're awfully light...You should eat more." Jay told her. Anna frowned and looked away. Jay looked around in the small room filled with tools and large tanks for the purifying process. They weaved their way through the equipment and found the door. Jay pulled it open, and as he did, several guard ran past him and Anna, who stood in the doorway a little absently. The guards didn't even bother looking back at them. Jay turned to Anna and she shrugged. They ran down the hallway the way the guards had come. As they rounded a corner, they saw three more guards running in their direction. Upon seeing Jay and Anna, the guards stopped and raised their guns. Jay and Anna looked at eachother quickly and looked back. Jay's eyes turned gold, and Anna crouched slightly. The guards fired on them, but it wasn't of any use. Jay weaved around the paths of the shots, easily discerning their vectors and avoiding them. Anna did the same, only focusing on the guns themselves, and watching carefully the way they were pointing, and simply tracing the path by line of sight. They were on the guards in only a single second. Anna sliced one guard's body clean in half with her axe. Jay grabbed the gun of another and pointed it up at his chin, and pulled the trigger himself. As the man dropped dead and let go of the weapon, Anna sliced apart the gun of the last one, and ducked down for Jay to shoot him. Jay walked over and picked up his gun too.

"You're using their weapons?" Anna asked him.

"Why not. Resources Anna. Resources. This way, I don't have to pull out my own weapons and waste ammo. Plus, I'd rather save the use of my own weapons for someone who deserves the effort. Like our targets..." Jay explained. Anna shrugged and followed suite by picking up the spare gun of the third guard from his belt, and running after Jay as they continued down the hall.

* * *

The twins jogged at a quicker and quicker pace, braking into a run until they reached the other side of the building. When they reached a spot they deemed sufficient, they glanced at eachother and Tia pulled out her batons. She passed one to her brother, and together they activated the fire dust crystals. Interacting with their aura, the flames crawled to a point on the baton and turned blue, then near white. They both started at the ground, about three feet away from eachother, and burned through the metal on the side of the building. As they did, they heard an explosion from the front of the building. Glancing at eachother, they attempted to speed up their efforts. Their auras protected them from the sparks and the heat as they made an opening in the side of the building. When they reached a point where the flames met, they stopped. Chris handed the baton back to his sister, and he kicked the large piece of metal in. Together they walked into the building and looked around the small room they had found. It looked like a bedroom.

"So they sleep here...Interesting." Chris muttered.

"Anyway, let's go. We've got a job to do here." Tia responded. He nodded and together they went over to the door. As they stepped out into the hallway, they heard shouting and gunshots in the distant parts of the building. Although they wanted a piece of the combat too, they decided it best to avoid that. Instead they followed the maze of hallways, using their scrolls to guide them. They didn't have internal maps, but they did have an image of the outside, and great directional orientation. They were trying to keep moving towards the middle of the building. They weaved this way and that, taking branches and stairs downward. Finally they came to a flight of stairs which they suspected to be at the very center of the building. They encountered no guard nor ally. At the bottom of the stairs was nothing but a long white hallway. They walked to the end where there was a door, next to which was propped a small computer board, meant to recognize a scroll code. They looked at eachother. Tia gestured towards it and Chris pulled out his batons. They both lit up with electricity and he jammed them into the board. The thing shorted and buzzed. After a second, the power in the hallway went out. He sheathed his batons and together they squeezed their nails into the doorway, then their fingertips, then their fingers before dragging the doors open. Inside was an elevator. They stepped in and waited a couple of seconds for auxiliary power to kick in. They both knew it would...A facility like this, and a hallway like this one...There simply had to be some sort of back-up power. When it did, Tia pressed the only button in the elevator. The doors closed and the elevator shook. On the display, it showed the feet bellow ground they were travelling. Twenty meters. Thirty meters. Forty meters. Fifty meters. Sixty meters. Seventy meters. Seventy five meters, and the elevator stopped.

The twins looked at eachother in surprise before the door opened. They stepped out. They found themselves in a large oval room. There several huge doors before them. Off to the side, there was an incredibly large platform that looked to be an elevator. They walked over to it and looked up. It appeared stretched as far as the surface, where there was a large hatch door. They were speechless as they walked back into the room where they started. Tia tapped Chris's shoulder and had him look above the doors. There were labels above each one.

"What in hell...Beowulves...Ursa Major...King Taijitu...Deathstalkers...They can't...There aren't...Do you think there are?" he said, glancing sidelong at his sister.

She shrugged, "Only one way to find out." she said. Together they walked over the the Ursa Major door. The door opened before them. Inside was a large room, with about twenty five large well lit cubes. Inside each cube was an Ursa Major. One of the cages by the door was empty. This one actually had a name tag before it. "Teddy?" Tia read in confusion. But something was wrong with these Ursa...Suddenly, the clear doors to the cubes slid down, opening the cages. The Ursa walked from the cages, and Chris and Tia ran back to the door, eyes wide in worry. The Ursa's roared and ran after them. The creatures of Grimm tried to run them down, but Chris looked back, letting their eyes turn light blue. Tia jumped in sync with Chris, over the swipe of one of them. But another came up over them. Chris and Tia grabbed arms and used eachother's weight as leverage, swinging themselves around the Ursa, one after another. Something wasn't right here, and they both knew it. The Ursa moved together, in a deliberate group. Their reflexes were vastly superior to any they'd ever seen, and they seemed to be able to plan a coordinated attack. Chris and Tia was forced over to the Deathstalker door, which opened behind them. The Ursa followed them in, and again, they noticed an empty cage, also labeled, George. They glanced at eachother as the Deathstalker cages opened. One of the ones next to them wasted no time in attacking them with their stinger. The twins flipped back in perfect harmony as an Ursa ran forward, being caught in the stinger, which went right through it's skull and killed it. Chris and Tia noticed the skull emitting sparks, and looked closely. They had some sort of implant...

That's what was going on here. They looked at eachother again as more Deathstalkers came forth from their cages behind them. But just then, the Ursa attacked... The Deathstalker that had brought down that first Ursa. The twin's watched them tear the creature apart, and grinned. They turned, and ran towards the Deathstalkers, keeping their shared vision sharp, and began to dodge around the Deathstalkers as they attacked. It was difficult, as they too could move as a unit. But the Ursa came upon them and a bloody battle began. The twins jumped on the cages, and leaped this way and that, using the Deathstalker's tails as swinging bars, jumped to the other side, and moving back towards the door. The Deathstalkers tried to follow, shoving their way through the Ursa, which didn't give any quarter. The cages began to break under the pressure of the battle shoving them into eachother. The twins knew they wouldn't live to see the surface if they tried for the elevator now...They'd only be trapped as the doors closed and be killed in the onslaught. Instead, they ran past the elevator door, and had it open as the things chased them past. They ran back into the Ursa room, the battle following. One of the Deathstalkers caught them against the back wall and tried to sting them. Chris and Tia pulled out their batons and both batted the stinger downwards instead. An Ursa then came up behind it and ripped the tail off. The Deathstalker turned and dug into it's torso with it's pincers. The twins saw their path at that moment. They jumped onto the back of the Deathstalker and both jammed their batons into it's armor. It screamed in pain as it's insides were boiled and shocked to death. All the other Deathstalkers turned away from the Ursa, and focused on the twins. They smiled...As they jumped forward off their kill, they ran for the door, through the din. They ducked under the swipe of pincers and leaped onto and over two Ursa who both had hold of a pincer each, and ripped the large scorpion apart. As they did, they wrapped their batons around the Ursa's neck, burning through the flesh and removing the head, and simply electrifying one to death. They continued this trend as they went, crippling some and allowing their opposing Grimm to finish them and then finishing the Grimm themselves on occasion. They rolled under one of the Ursa as pincers lifted it from the ground, and out the door.

They ran into the small room and into the elevator, which closed before any of the fighting Grimm noticed. They both gasped and heaved huge breaths, trying to recover. They looked at eachother and began to chuckle. Then they let it rise to a full laugh, gripping eachother's shoulders to stay steady.

"That was INSANE!" Chris said, as their eyes faded back to their original color.

"I KNOW!" Tia gasped in response.

"What in hell...Are those things..." Chris said.

"I don't know...But they were crazy strong...Much stronger then any other Grimm I've ever seen." Tia exclaimed.

"Yeah...They appeared to have brain implants, but each species wasn't connected...They couldn't be, because they attacked eachother." Chris thought out-loud.

Tia nodded, "No, they were separate alright...Seek and destroy any threat...First us, then their higher priority opponents...Wow...And did you notice the empty cages?" she asked, looking at her brother and leaning against the side of the elevator.

"Yeah...Teddy and George, I think it was..." he answered. They shook their heads together.

"Ok...I think I know what we're using our charges on," Chris said as he opened up the dufflebag he still had on his shoulder. They'd both forgotten about it in the scrap...He pulled out one of the fire charges and set it to two minutes as the elevator opened back into the white hallway. He put the one back in the bag and dropped the bag in the elevator, pressing the button that would take the elevator down. Then they walked away as the doors closed. When they got to the top of the staircase, they heard it go off, and braced on eachother as the whole building shook above the massive explosion. They looked at eachother and smiled in satisfaction as they went off to find their allies.

* * *

Jay tossed away the empty guns and bent down and picked up the communicator from one of the fallen mercenaries. Anna glanced around the small room as he did so, watching for anymore of them to come around a corner. When she was satisfied the were clear, she walked over to Jay, who was fiddling with the comm. He heard chatter about a man with a metal arm and a viscous women with a whip in two different parts of the facility and laughed to himself. He fiddled more with the comm's channels, and switched the settings to the locator form. The red light on the display started flashing, and Jay smiled again. He heard more chattering on the comm, but ignored it.

"And what exactly does that red light do?" Anna asked.

Jay looked up at her, "This is a Survival Comm. This red light will flash more when we get close to other comm's. When they get close enough, it will start to beep loudly. I turned down the volume though, so now we can sneak around without having to deal with the small fry." he explained. They went through the door on the far side of the room, and continued to run down the halls. They passed door after door, looking through the windows as they did, but there was no one present in any of the bedrooms or labs or conference rooms. They rounded a corner and the comm began to beep. Without hesitation, Jay yanked open one of the doors on his right, grabbed Anna's arm and pulled her through it, shutting it quickly behind them. Once inside, Jay pulled Anna over to himself and ducked down under the window with Anna in tow. Footsteps slammed passed them in the hall and they sat next to eachother waiting for them to pass. When they did, Jay stood and pulled Anna to her feet. The bedroom they had stepped into looked as though no one had ever used it before. The desk had gathered dust, and the bed sheets hadn't ever been changed. Anna felt a little uncomfortable in the room, while Jay just glanced around. They opened the door up and went back into the hall. No sooner then they stepped out did another two guards come around the corner, and only after that happened did the comm start beeping.

Jay rolled his eyes, "Damnit!" he shouted, and pulled the comm of his belt, "What is the point of you!" he shouted at it.

"**Watch out!**" Anna shouted as she shoved him to the side as the guards open fired, but Jay grabbed her arm and yanked her with him, out of the path of the shots. Jay slammed against the wall, and Anna slammed against him. Neither Jay nor Anna hesitated, however, to reach back on his belt and pull out one of his tonfas each. Anna turned on her heel away from Jay, and shot as Jay pulled one out and did the same. Both the guards fell dead to the first attacks.

Jay looked at Anna, "Quick thinking, there...I would've dodged, though..." Jay said. Anna's face turned red and handed the tonfa back to Jay. He put both back on the clips on his belt.

"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to... I just...My weapon wouldn't have worked from that distance, and I knew yours would...I'm sorry, I know you don't like people touching you or your things..." she stammered. Jay shook his head,

"It's fine. Like I said before...Right now is no time for my stupid boundaries...You have nothing to apologize for." he said calmly. They continued through the hallway, walking over the bodies, and turning to the left. Beyond this point, there was nothing but a small door. They glanced at eachother and the door opened as they waked towards it.

Nick and Sasha ducked down behind the counter against the shots of the mercenary guns. They were currently in what looked to be a break room. The couch had been tipped over, and set on fire by Nick's blasts. Nick stood up and shot over the counter they were hiding behind. The shot hit one of the mercenaries in the head and burned through to the brain, killing the man. He ducked back down, as Sasha went up, heaving Loachsamhail around to shoot down another one. "They're still coming... What do we do," she said to Nick. Nick pulled out another fire charge and pressed the button on the top, "Thin em out..." he said, and tossed the canister over the counter. She explosion silenced the gunshots. Nick and Sasha came out from behind the counter and glanced around. Nick walked over and picked up one of the guns that was still intact, and smiled at Sasha.

She rolled her eyes, "Put that down..." she said.

Nick frowned, "Why?...Shouldn't we be using them if we can?" Nick responded. She looked at him seriously, "

No...You're a huntsman in training now for god's sake. You don't need to use other people's weapons. You have your own, and you should take pride in using it..." she said, as though she was a parent.

"But...I have pride and all, but I kinda think I should conserve my canisters for Leif and Iskelle...If Jay were here, he'd say I should use it..." he muttered. S

asha rolled her eyes, "Then maybe you should've teamed up with him." she said sternly. Nick frowned again and dropped the gun, grabbing her free arm.

"It wasn't my choice, and even if it was, I'd have chosen you. You matter more. Jay's one thing, but he's with Anna, and he's a big boy. He's capable of fighting without me." he said seriously. Sasha blushed a little and walked close to him, kissing him on the cheek.

"Thanks for that...Now like I said...You don't need their weapons with a weapon like yours...Leave it, and let's go..." she turned and walked away. Nick smiled and watched the movement of her hips as she went. "**Eyes front, soldier**." she called back to him. Nick shook his head clear and jogged to catch up to her. She looked over her shoulder smugly at him, and he smiled and walked behind her deliberately. As they rounded another corner, there were only two guards to greet them.

"Party's thinning out..." Nick said as they shot them down together without hesitation. They stepped over their bodies as they walked towards the door they were guarding. The double door slid open as they walked towards it, and walked into a giant white room. The door sealed shut behind them. They glanced back at it, then turned to look at the whole room, and noticed five doors total. The one that they had come through. One on the right wall. One on the back wall. And two on the left wall. And on the far side of the room...Stood Leif Malladus and Iskelle Femmaren. Neither Nick nor Sasha hesitated to immediately restock their clips and canisters. But neither of their targets moved to stop them, or even made any move at all. Suddenly, the door on the other side of the room swung open and Jay and Anna walked in. Leif and Iskelle looked at eachother, and stood up straight. Leif held on to his poison canister, and the room began to fill with the same fog as before. Jay noticed and looked at Nick quickly. Nick opened the pouch on his belt and pulled out his extra Wind canister. He hadn't used any of the first one, so he was fine wasting this one. He quickly tossed the canister towards the ceiling. The case shattered on the ceiling and reacted immediately, sweeping the room clean of the fog with swirling gales. The wind howled viciously, escaping through the vents, and taking the poison with it.

Nick smiled, "Not this time." he said.

"This time...Your **our** prey..." Jay said after him.

* * *

Samuel leaned back against the wall behind Rachel as she continued viciously lashing out at the guards. He chuckled slightly, because it wasn't like they stood any chance. They came around the corner and she was just waiting to knock them down as she saw them. They tried raising their guns, but the weren't fast enough. They tried attacking in numbers, but she'd use the body of one to shield herself while she finished the rest. Sam pushed himself from the wall, still equipped for combat, and jumped over Rachel as she retracted from an attack. He ran quickly to the end of the hall. Two guards reached the corner as he did, but they weren't standing for long, as Samuel cut them down without hesitation. He glanced down the hall and motioned for Rachel to follow. She did, and together they continued running down the hall.

"How many is that now?" he asked her casually.

She looked at him through the corner of her eye as they ran, "Thirty seven." she said simply.

"Damn, you're on fire today..." he said back. She smiled as they moved.

Sam noticed and smiled as well, "There it is...You don't smile enough, Rachel. It's good to see...It makes you look much more beautiful." he remarked. Her face was slightly red as they almost rounded the next corner. Guards were waiting for them though, and Sam stopped short of the turn, grabbing Rachel's arm as she rounded the corner. Their guns went off, but Sam had already pulled Rachel back, against himself. She looked over at his face, an inc from hers, and smiled again.

"Thanks, Sam..." she said, in a much more gentler tone than she normally spoke with. He smiled again. She stood up, so as to not stay leaning against Sam all day, and they waited at the corner, as the guards continued firing.

"Damnit, why won't they stop?" Sam said, annoyed.

"Listen close...They're alternating fire. One fires so as to let the other reload, and then the other does the same." she conjectured.

"Ok...So let's wait till the alternation, and attack the one reloading?" Sam asked. She nodded. But before they got to go along with this plan, there were two gasps and the bullet hail stopped. They both glanced tentatively around the corner, to see Chris and Tia standing over the dead guards. They high-fived one another as Sam and Rachel came around the corner and walked over to them.

"These two were giving you trouble, eh?" they said together.

"A little bit. Good to see you two though...Have you made any contact with Team JNAS?" Sam asked. They shook their heads in unison, as they always did.

"Damn...So what happened? You two know where our targets are?" Rachel chimed in. Again they shook their heads.

"But we did find something interesting." they said. Both Rachel and Sam's heads perked up at this. "We know what this place is for. There were Grimm hidden here. But they weren't normal Grimm." they said. Sam and Rachel shared a look. "What do you mean, weren't normal Grimm?" Sam asked, a little worried about the potential answers. "They had brain implants...They didn't act like Grimm. They acted like an army." they explained.

"An army?" Rachel spoke up again.

The twins nodded, "Yeah. They acted as though they were intelligent. They fought together, as if they planned their moves together...They coordinated attacks. But oddly enough, they were willing to attack eachother..."

"Attack eachother? I thought you said they were intelligent..." Rachel said.

"Not like that. The Ursa Major attacked together, as did the Deathstalkers...But when a Deathstalker accidentally killed an Ursa, all the other Ursa began tearing them apart." they continued.

Sam's eyes widened, "Wait...Ursa Major and Deathstalkers? How in hell did you get out of there alive? Even with them attacking eachother, if you two got caught in such a fight, you'd have been slaughtered..." Sam said in shock.

The twins beamed with pride, "We just stayed out of the way. The Ursa Major distracted and massacred the Deathstalkers, while we just thinned the Ursa's numbers a bit to get to the elevator. Oh yeah, we should mention that this was underground. We blew up the elevator." the twins seemed quite proud of their accomplishments. Sam and Rachel were surprised, but then again...These were the Dragoon Twins. This was just proof of their abilities.

Sam looked around at his team, "Ok, let's proceed. Our targets are very dangerous, so it's best we continue together." Sam said, assuming his leader role again. They decided to double back, seeing as the twins could tell them there was nothing down the way they'd come. Instead, they went back to an earlier branch in their path, and take the other hallway. "Where are any of the guards, we couldn't have finished them all..." Rachel said as they walked through the halls. After a while they came to a door on what they could only think was at the top of the building.

Sam opened the door, which led onto the roof. The trees had vanished under a landing pad, where at that moment, a Bullhead was just taking off. It appeared as though the camouflage was activated by proximity, because as the thing flew off, the trees began appearing from holes opening up in the rooftop. But these trees were clearly fake, made of metal, and collapsed into the ground. But that wasn't the important matter. What was, was the man standing on the rooftop with them as they all walked out onto the landing pad, the trees rising around them. None of them could see his face, as he wore a long black cloak that came down to his feet, with a hood that he had drawn over his head.

"Who's that?" the twins asked, to anyone in particular. No one answered. The man said nothing, instead beginning to walk towards them. A dread fell over Team SCRT, and all of them began shuttering. No one waited for him to get close to draw their weapons. The man walked silently, as though not moving at all, and shadows shifted behind him...

Sam frowned, "What are those...Shadows?..." he muttered. Rachel shook her head. She didn't know what it was either. But it didn't matter. Her heart was beating far too fast. The whole team felt like animals, trapped in a steel box in a forest. They wanted to attack...To lash out at this...This Demon. But they couldn't move. Rachel was the first to snap. She attacked with a mighty swing of her whip, but the hit never landed...Instead, the small bulb on the head of the whip was suddenly chopped from the end by the shifting shadows. Rachel's eyes widened and her teeth gritted. The whole team gasped. Sam didn't waste time. The twins followed him as he ran towards the Demon, with only a small hope of bringing him down...

* * *

Leif and Iskelle looked at eachother, as Leif heaved his cylinder onto his shoulder. They walked into the middle of the room, where they stood deliberately. Jay and Anna took up a position on Iskelle's side, and Nick and Sasha faced Leif. Leif nodded towards Iskelle, who stood with her back to him. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a scroll. Jay glanced at Anna as Iskelle fiddled with it for a second or two. She put the scroll away, and the room shook suddenly. A large wall rose from the floor, right in between Leif and Iskelle. The wall rose all the way up to the ceiling and slammed into place. Jay and Anna's mouths dropped open.

"Well that was unexpected." Jay muttered. On Leif's side, Nick and Sasha just looked at the wall with disbelief.

"I know...No one ever sees things like this coming..." Leif said to them.

Nick and Sasha glared at him, and he smiled while Iskelle laughed a menacing laugh, "What was that about prey, you worthless little shit?" Iskelle taunted. Jay shook his head. Anna pulled her axe off of her back and held it out in her normal stance. Jay took his tonfas off of his belt and didn't hesitate to clip the bayonet endings on them. He crossed his arms over his chest like he always did. Iskelle's eyes narrowed, and she raised her hands out in front of her. The designs on her shirt began to glow more as she readied for battle. Meanwhile, Leif had already prepared himself for combat, and stood ready for Nick and Sasha.

Leif dropped his cylinder from his shoulder and ran towards Nick and Sasha. He was already tapping away on the triggers, and catching the needles in his right hand as he passed the cylinder over to his left. Nick and Sasha separated, trying to split his attention. This didn't work, and Leif immediately focused on Nick, swinging the cylinder around to strike Nick. Nick blocked with his left arm and opened his palm, already set to the lightning canister, and let out a blast, which Leif ducked under. He turned and threw the needles at Sasha, who had gotten ready to shoot toward Leif. She stopped and dodged right, using her Strength to roll to her feet and redirect herself to shoot again. Nick pulled free his sword and slashed towards Leif, who shoved Nick's left arm off of his canister and jumped back. On the other side of the wall, Jay and Anna had began to move towards Iskelle, who crossed her arms to her shoulders, then threw them back out, tossing small blue orbs. The orbs didn't move towards Jay and Anna, instead, they moved towards the ground in front of them. Jay's eyes turned gold, and he ran forward, as Anna ran left. The orbs hit the ground, and huge stalagmites formed in quick succession in a spread pattern. They ice began to move towards the two of them, continuing to form viscous spikes. Jay leaped up as the trail of them reached him, and landed in between two of them, proceeding to move towards Iskelle by pushing himself off of the sides, and moving closer. Anna dodged around the ice, trying to stay moving towards Iskelle as well. Iskelle raised her palm, and the ice under Jay started glowing and shifting. Jay jumped off of the ice as it detonated in a huge blast. Anna had gotten close enough to Iskelle to attack, and started to do so, swinging her axe around her arms and body, striking without hesitation. The blue patterns on Iskelle's shirt began to flow again, and the dust moved to her hands, and formed huge curved claws at the end of them. She used these to block Anna's blows, slashing back at Anna whenever she got the chance. At that time, Leif was holding strong against Nick and Sasha, who had taken to move closer to Leif. Leif had pressed the triggers, and from them, he produced four needles that appeared to be shaped like claws as well, and he held them in between his fingers, using them to block Nick's slash attacks. He used the cylinder to block Sasha and swung back at her. She parried and swung low, forcing him to jump, as Nick switched to the wind canister. He raised his palm, and while Leif was still in the air, loosed a blast that Leif guarded with his cylinder, as Nick knew he would. But the gale force blew him back, over Sasha. He landed on his back and rolled to his feet, tapping the triggers again as he threw the claw needles towards Sasha so that she couldn't move towards him. He caught the next set of needles, and began to throw them at the high rates that he used before. Nick recognized the metal piercing needles and was careful to avoid them. But as he did, Leif moved in close and swung with all his strength. Sasha intervened, putting her claymore in between Nick and the blow. Leif was strong, but he was no match for Sasha's Strength, and she threw him back, pointing her blade towards him and firing. The shots bounced harmlessly off of the canister as he countered, throwing needles towards Nick, who used the wind canister to through them off course.

Anna back-flipped over Jay, who slid under her, as Iskelle slashed towards her. Jay came to his feet using his heels, and blocked the attacks, and began to fight Iskelle up close himself, using his bayonet endings to slash at her, while she continued with her claws. Anna watched carefully, keeping a suitable distance, as Jay continued to push Iskelle back. Every move she made was crystal clear to him, each twitch of those aura filled claws full of light and sharp, slow motion. He easily picked her defense apart, getting close, and crossing his arms over his chest. He threw them out, as Iskelle raised her claws to block. The force of the blow threw her back against the wall, and her claws shattered into dust. Anna jumped over Jay and moved in, long-sword equipped, and tried to keep her there. But Jay ran forward, tossing Umbra into the air. The dust that had fallen from her claws glowed as it hit the ground. Jay grabbed Anna by the collar and yanked her back like a kitten, as the dust formed into an icy spire that would've stabbed right through Anna. Jay pulled her back, making sure she stayed on her feet, and as he let go of her collar, he caught Umbra, and dodged back as Iskelle's hands glowed. He switched the orientation of his tonfas and began to shoot the blasts that Iskelle let loose, destroying them in the air, while Leif had Nick and Sasha right upon him on both sides. Sasha turned on her heel, slashing at him in a spinning attack, taking a page from Anna's book. Leif blocked the strikes with his canister and turned to use it to block Nick's attacks, while he used more claw needles to slash at Sasha. Sasha stepped back, allowing Leif to return focus to Nick, running at him, and bringing his cylinder down on his prosthetic arm. Nick grunted under the force, and was driven to his knees. Sasha's eyes narrowed and she moved to shoot at Leif, but he had already retrieved more needles, and and turned to toss them at Sasha, who had to dodge. But Nick used the opportunity, turning his arm and grabbing the body of the cylinder, pulling Leif off balance as he threw it to the side, and stood. Nick slashed down at him, but Leif used his loss of balance, rolling into the canister and past Nick's slash. Leif turned the canister over, slamming the handle to the ground, and jumping up on top of it. The sides of the canister opened up, revealing the outer shell to look spoke like mechanisms that folded into the thing, which now fell open and began spinning. Leif smiled as Sasha and Nick's eyes widened in worry. There was a small blast, and the sound like a gun shot as needles were launched in every direction. Nick raised his hand and let loose the last of the wind canister in one blast, producing a huge gale wave the knocked the needles moving towards them around them. All the needles stuck into the walls, as Leif jumped down, the spokes folding back into the cylinder.

"Bad idea...Now you're out of wind dust...How will you defend against that a second time?" Leif teased, taking the cylinder by the handle, and pressing the triggers again, letting loose more needles.

Meanwhile, Iskelle had had used her power to break off the spikes that she had first sent towards Jay and Anna. Those spikes hovered in circles around Jay and Anna, and flew towards them in odd patterns. Jay's eyes saw most of it, and the two of them all but danced around eachother in circles, ducking under, rolling over, and swinging around the other to block, or otherwise destroy them as they flew towards them. Jay was good, but Anna's poleaxe was doing most of the work, easily twirling around herself, and even Jay, who used his Semblance to decipher the pattern, and match her movement style, letting her use him like an extra body to use her axe with. And it was a near perfect defense. Not a single ice crystal made it through the two of them. Soon, Iskelle threw her arms across the other, and all the ice came at them at once. Jay jumped up over Anna, twisting in the air over her own spinning defense. Jay's bayonets slashed through half of the ice, and Anna's axe slashed through the ones that remained. Iskelle's teeth ground as she growled angrily at the two of them, as Jay landed next to Anna. They stood and Iskelle's shirt began shifting again. The ice formed into her hands. She gripped the handles of two long, single edged ice swords. With these in hand, she ran towards Jay and Anna. On Leif's side, he had Nick and Sasha dodging as he continued his onslaught. Nick and Sasha wondered how long this could last. His supply wasn't infinite, was it? How long could he hold. Suddenly, he stopped throwing needles and ran towards them. Nick and Sasha smirked and started jumping back, keeping their distance. Sasha shot towards him, forcing Leif to stop and stay in place, while Nick ran around to the side, and raised his palm, heading with the ice canister. He shot a fourth of the container at once, but Leif recognized the blast, and dodged instead of blocked. They blast hit the wall, showering dust through the air, and covering it in a huge chunk of ice.

Leif looked at Nick, "Nice try, but I won't fall for the same trick twice." he said slyly.

"THIS ORIGINAL ENOUGH FOR YOU," Sasha shouted, as she smashed through the block of ice, Loachsamhail swinging towards Leif with all her strength. He raised the canister to block...But the blow was far too powerful, lifting him off of his feet, and throwing him back, against the back wall. His cylinder slammed into him as well, knocking the air from his lungs. There was a huge dent in the side of the cylinder...Nick and Sasha walked towards him now. It's not like he was going anywhere at this point. On the other side, Jay and Anna fought Iskelle, who moved with her dancer's motion, twisting around. But Anna had something now that she didn't have before...Her Semblance. Jay rolled around Iskelle and jumped back as Anna took control, also dodging back, activating her Semblance to make Iskelle see her move forward instead. Iskelle slashed at the illusion, which disappeared as Anna took the opening, swinging, and knocking her back towards Jay. Jay immediately, slammed his right leg into her in a high kick. He twisted his left heel, using the motion to turn and throw Iskelle back. She grunted and looked up after recovering, to see Jay upon her. 'That's not possible,' she thought, as she put her arms up to guard...But the illusion vanished, as Jay really surged towards her, his arms crossed over his chest. She had made her see that so she would guard instead of attack, which provided Jay the time to get in close. "This is for calling Anna a whore..." he shouted as he threw out his arms, lunging past her. The blades shattered just like that, and the dust on her shirt scattered as the blow sliced throw the clothe. Iskelle shouted in pain as blood flowed from her shoulders and lower sides, where Jay's slash had cut through, and she fell to her knees. Anna had now come upon her.

She raised up her axe, ready to bring it down, "AND THIS ONE'S FOR SASHA!" she shouted, bringing the blade down. But at that moment, the wall dropped from the ceiling, as a door opened. Anna stopped her attack. Jay turned and glanced over at Nick and Sasha, who stood over Leif.

The whole team looked over at the door which had opened. A man stood there, in a long black cloak. The hood was drawn, and it looked as though there were shadows dancing around him. They ebbed this way and that like sand or river water...But they also looked solid. The man raised his hand and pulled back his hood, to reveal silver hair.

His eyes burned blood red as opened his mouth, "That's enough..."

**(AN sorry for the erratic updating schedule, again, give us a review and if you have any ideas for the story that you can think of, please, send us a PM either on here, or on )**


	5. Chapter 5 The Demon's Advent

No one moved…The room was silent and still. The man with silver hair and red eyes stood with his shifting shadows. All of Team JNAS felt a sense of dread wash over them. Suddenly, Iskelle began to cry. Anna looked back at her and held her axe back up, but the shadows promptly shifted, and a long skinny piece stretching towards Anna. Jay moved forward and shoved Anna back, leaning back himself to avoid the thing as it stabbed the air in front of him. Jay's golden eyes looked it over and widened in shock. The shadow looked completely solid now. It softened and retracted, moving back to the man.

He smiled at Jay, "So? Did you see it, Scholar?" he asked. Jay's eyes narrowed. The Dark Voice in his head screamed in anger and fear, 'How does he know anything about me?...Why did he call me that?!' Jay silenced it.

"What was that, Jay?" Anna asked. Her voice wasn't shaky or light, but strong. The man looked over at Nick and Sasha, then down at Leif. Leif grunted and used his dented cylinder to push himself to his feet. Neither Nick nor Sasha intervened, worried that whatever he did to attack Anna would happen again. He limped as he dragged the heavy canister to the door behind the mystery man. Iskelle also stood up. Jay watched her, but no one bothered trying to stop her from walking out. This newcomer was clearly the higher priority. Iskelle nearly cowered as he simply glanced at her on her way out.

"Jay…What exactly **was** that he just used, eh?" Nick said. Nick and Sasha had stood and were walking towards Jay and Anna. Jay simply looked at the man, who raised his eyebrows, as if waiting for him to explain.

"...A diamond." Jay muttered.

Sasha also raised her eyebrow, "What? I'm sorry, did you say-" Sasha began, only to be interrupted by Jay.

"Yes. A diamond. Not exactly as you know it though. When I say diamond, I mean carbon. That stuff was basically an incredibly brittle graphite…." he explained.

"It didn't look brittle," Anna said as the team stood together now.

Jay shook his head, "It wasn't...The composition changed to a similar rigid make up of diamond carbon. But it wasn't see-through...It's still absorbing photons with that make-up. Unstable. Covered in wild electrons...Probably kept from reacting or forming a new molecule by his aura. That way it can quickly be shifted from that fragile form that we see floating around him to that incredibly strong...Graphene-death-diamond. Odd, as graphene and diamonds don't have similar constructions. And I wager that's his Semblance...He has control over certain forms of carbon. Isn't that right?" Jay said to the mysterious man. He smiled and nodded, beginning to clap.

"Those eyes of yours are really something." he said. His cloak shifted this way and that rhythmically. Jay glanced down.

"Holy Castiel….You're a faunus." Jay said. The whole team's eyes widened and tried to follow his gaze. The man lifted back his cloak, revealing a silver wolf's tail, wagging back and forth. He let his cloak drop again as the whole team was slightly surprised by this. The team looked back and forth between themselves.

"I hope my subordinates kept you well entertained. They were waiting for me, you see. I will give you thirty seconds, with which, you are to prepare for combat. I would like to give you a fair chance of making it out of here alive. Does that sound reasonable?" he said in a calm voice. Again Team JNAS glanced between themselves. Then they began to eject their empty or low clips and canisters, replacing them with fresh ones to battle with. Jay glanced over at Nick, who was replenishing the canisters from the pouch on his belt.

"Nick, leave out the lightning canister." he muttered.

Nick looked at him in shock, "What?! Why?!" he said, slightly aghast at Jay's demand.

"Weren't you listening? That stuff is covered in free electrons, kept in check by his Semblance. You use lightning, and he'll absorb and redirect it...Your fire canister's also pretty useless...Diamonds are one of the best insulators around...Your best explosion wouldn't phase him." Jay explained.

"Listen to your colleague. He's correct." the man said. Nick looked disgusted by this. Sasha looked over at Anna and rolled her eyes. Anna giggled at this, which was odd. Her heart felt like it wanted to stop beating under the pressure in the air right now. Why everyone was nonchalantly readying for battle with this hanging over them was beyond her...

Everyone examined their weapons and stretched, preparing themselves for another battle. Nick didn't think something was right. It was only one guy against the four of them...He couldn't possibly win...Why was he letting them prepare? Why was he so calm? Nick didn't like it. But this guy would learn his lesson soon enough...Or at least that's what he was trying to convince himself. He still wasn't completely sure. The man had sat down cross-legged in front of the door that Leif and Iskelle had exited through. When they were finished, the team stood ready, standing side by side. The man stood up, and the shadows shifted around him. He unbuttoned the cloak and threw it back off of himself. His shirt was grayish, and he wore black jeans. The shadows seemed to multiply suddenly, coming out of his long sleeves and seeming to spread in area. They reared up behind him, and then wrapped themselves around him. They flowed over his clothing and became solid. One layer, two layers over his whole body, even over his tail, up to the neck. The shadows then hovered behind him, ready to move into position as he commanded them to. The team was shocked at the sight of him. They moved into position, getting in their stances and tensing their muscles. Nick held his sword over his left shoulder, blade pointing towards the man, with his left arm outstretched parallel to it. Sasha had a wide set stance, holding the handle of her claymore in her right hand, and the barrel on the back of the blade in her left, pointing the tip towards their challenger. Anna held a stance similar to Sasha's but with her right hand forward on her poleaxe's staff instead. Jay held his tonfas crossed over his chest with the bayonets out, like he always did. The mystery man stood with his arms out and palms open, facing down. The carbon shell had formed over his hands like claws, making him look as though he had the claws of a wolf. His feet also took on a similar appearance to a wolves. Everything was tense for a moment. The second stretched out, and seem to fill an hour. Sasha gathered herself to be the first one to attack. She lunged forward, shooting towards his head. He stood up straight and raised his palm, blocking the shot without difficulty. Nick immediately dashed after her, while Anna ran to the left, and Jay to the right. Sasha turned on her heel and swung to try and take off the man's head, but he ducked and slammed his right fist into her stomach. She gasped for air and dropped her sword falling back. Nick caught her and raised his arm to fire at the man. The man raised his arm in defense.

Nick smirked, "Wrong move," he said as he switched to the ice canister. The blast hit the man's arm and froze over it, crawling onto his body as well. They man stumbled a little bit. Anna had come up on the man's right, where the ice was. The whole team's hearts beat a little quicker. Anna's skill at this range was superior to the whole of the rest of the team. She could finish it right then and there, they all thought. Nick had picked Sasha up and was moving back with her. Anna swung, the shadows shifted, the ice cracked and shattered, the man blocked her attack with his open palm. Then, without even a delay in his movement, he brought his right foot to Anna's chest and kicked hard. Anna flew back, axe flying with her, all the way to the other wall. She fell to the ground and coughed up blood.

"ANNA!" Jay shouted. Nick looked back at them and went to put Sasha down. But she didn't stay down, and immediately stood, shaking on her feet a little, to follow Nick back into the battle. The man turned to Jay and kicked Sasha's blade up from the ground where she'd dropped it. He lifted it as though it was a light rapier. He took it in his left hand. Jay smiled and crossed his arms over his chest as he ran towards him. He knew what would happen. This guy had been filling carbon with his aura, and his Semblance blazed. Jay's Sight couldn't have been sharper. Jay leaped up over the man as he made a wide swing. He landed on the other side and turned attack him. But the man had already reared back and brought the blade down on Jay. He stayed up, but the man reached over and grabbed Jay's arms in one hand, still crossed over his head to block the heavy claymore. He tightened his grip and Jay felt pain in his arms as his own tonfas were crushed against them. The man picked him up by his arms, turning and tossing him at Nick. Nick ducked under him, as the man threw Sasha's blade to the side. Nick reached out with his metal arm and grabbed hold of the man's right arm. He began to try to crush the armor, and the man's arm with it...But the armor barely showed even minuscule cracks. The man reached over with his left arm and grabbed Nick's prosthetic. He began to squeeze...And the sharp claws on his fingers sunk right through the metal on Nick's arm. Nick screamed in pain as Sasha picked up her sword from where he'd thrown it, and ran towards him, intent on killing the man here and now. The man saw her and gave Nick's arm one final squeeze, squashing the metal core that was surrounded by artificial nerve clusters. Nick gasped and the man tossed him back, throwing him clear across the room. He ducked back away from Sasha's down-swing. The blade hit the ground and the man slammed his foot against the blade, keeping it down on the ground, and grabbed Sasha by the neck before she could move back. Anna lay unconscious on the wall, and Nick couldn't move with the wind knocked from his lungs and his arm no longer functional. Jay tried to stand and fight, but before he could, the shadows reared up again and struck out at Jay. Jay could only dodge the first attack before he was knocked back next to Nick. Sasha grappled at the man's arm, trying to crush it with what was left of her strength, but her muscles were beginning to hurt, and she was gasping through the man's grip. She began to struggle less and less, no one able to stop him.

Nick began to cry, struggling to his feet, "Let her go...Stop it now! Or I swear to the great Monty I'll kill you!" he shouted still feeling the pain in his back and arms. His legs shook. The man looked at him, then back at Sasha and smiled. He loosened his grip, and let Sasha fall to the ground.

"How touching..." he muttered. Nick fell again, unable to stand. Jay looked back and forth over the members of his team. This man had torn them apart in less then a minute...Who in hell **is** this, he thought. The man picked Sasha up by the back of her neck, and tossed her back. The armor shifted from the man's body and the shadows began to shift and turn. They extended out in front of the man, and formed to long rods. His aura flared slightly and he released the guards on the electrons, instead using his aura to excite them more and more. The air was filled with electricity as the rods buzzed with lightning. The shadows began to swirl into a small arrow like strip of black crystal, above the rods. The man pointed the rods towards Jay and Nick. Jay recognized what he was doing...He recognized a railgun when he saw one. That little black missile would slaughter Jay and Nick when it was fired...And there was nothing they could do to stop it. Jay closed his eyes and breathed as deeply as he could. Nick stared in disbelief...He had come all this way...Gotten into Beacon... Only to die here...

Suddenly, there was a bang from one of the sides of the room as the door was kicked off it's hinges. The shadows separated from the small missile, which began to drop towards the metal rods. Jay crossed his arms over his head with his eyes still closed, but Nick continued watching. They struck the rods and there was a deafening bang, as voltage dissipated when the missile left contact with them. The world slowed down, and even at mach 3, the missile seemed to move in slow motion...Nick saw a flash of blue move in front of the missile, and with a flourished motion, the missile crashed in two pieces into the walls on either side of Jay and Nick. Jay gasped and opened his eyes. Someone stood in front of them. He looked back at the walls where the missile had crashed. The thing had been cut clean in two. He looked back at the person...They were facing away from them. Jay looked them up, starting with the large brown combat boots. Then up at the blue thigh armor pieces, which held small pouches on either side. Then up to the small light back piece that connected to the chest piece, both of which were also blue. There were blue pieces of armor over the forearms, and gripped in the hands, were two one-foot radius bladed fans, that glowed teal. Jay's mouth fell open as he looked at the familiar brunette ponytail...

"Mickey?!" he gasped.

Mickey smirked and stood up straight, glancing back at Jay and Nick, "You two alright?" she asked. Nick and Jay could only nod, their faces portraying their shock. She nodded back and turned back to the man with a very serious look on her face. The shadows shifted and the electricity faded as the man let his armor form around his body again. He looked at Mickey with slight surprise, and with some admiration. He began to clap, the armor shifting from his hands momentarily for it.

He nodded, "Very good...How did you do that?" he asked lightly. Mickey didn't flinch or speak. The man's face fell, and he got serious. Mickey began walking towards him. Anna had begun to stir, but Sasha hadn't.

Mickey looked at them in turn, "Jay. Nick. Stand up. Get Anna and Sasha, and get to the roof. Alice is waiting in a bullhead to get you out of here...We've already retrieved Team SCRT. Get moving." she said seriously. Jay was filled with hope, as was Nick. They pushed themselves to stand and began to walk towards Sasha and Anna. The man glanced at them...The shadows shifted and stabbed towards them both. Suddenly they slowed down again, and Mickey sliced through them both without difficulty with those bladed fans. The man frowned now, beginning to get annoyed. The shadows shifted and formed curved scimitars in his hands.

"Congratulations...You've now earned my undivided attention... Mickey, was it?...My name is Xellos..." he said. He began to walk forward towards Mickey. They both stopped, six feet from eachother. Xellos stood with the blades out, with his feet together. Mickey stood with a wide crouching stance, and held the fans like back-hand swords.

"I'll teach you what a mistake it was to mess with my boy and his team." Mickey muttered threateningly.

Mickey made the first move, closing the distance between them in a single moment, and began to slash at Xellos, again as though wielding back-hand blades. He raised his blades in his defense, and sparks flew off of them as the fans cut through the back of the scimitars. The carbon reformed the blades as he countered. Mickey leaped over the low swing and slashed through the sword. The base of the fans were attached to the gauntlets by small metallic cords. Mickey let go of the fan in her right hand, and the cord unfurled from the inside of the hollow gauntlet. She swung it around as a mace with a very long chain, letting the wire wrap around her arm and then unwrap, gaining momentum and slamming into Xellos' blades, while she continued to block his attacks and counters with the fan in her left hand. She swung the fan around, turning on her heels and wrapping it around Xellos. Xellos tried to cut through the wire, but it wouldn't cut, and Mickey pulled, yanking him in close. He ducked under her slash attack and loosened the cord and he slipped out. He turned to Mickey, who was still recovering. The wire retracted as things slowed down again...She caught the fan in her hand, and the indents began to glow again. She swung it, knowing it wouldn't hit him...But the wind dust activated. The gale that was produced threw Xellos back, off of his feet. The shadows began to swirl around him again as he came to his feet. But Mickey crossed her arms over her chest as the dust in on the fans glowed in reaction to her aura. She swung the fans, spinning around on her heels and swinging them again and again, producing gale after gale. The winds blew the shadows, still in their brittle graphite form, away like sand in a tornado. The man's armor was still formed, but he couldn't move towards her through the gales...And he couldn't form any weapons with her blowing away the graphite before it could solidify into the diamond graphene. The room shook under the force of the winds as Jay reached stumbled over to Anna. She was using her axe to hold herself in place. He reached out to her and she looked up at him. She took a hand off of her axe and held on tight to his. He pulled her to her feet and put a hand around her, putting her arm over his shoulder. Nick was trying to wake Sasha as Jay and Anna headed for the door Mickey came through. Mickey stopped her swings and closed the fans, turned and slipping them back into the pouches in her thighs. Xellos took the opportunity to make the shadows reform. He raised them up into a large dome-like wind barrier before him, as Mickey pulled the fans out again, and opened them, scattering wind dust off of them, having refilled the fans with it. Behind his wind barrier, Xellos began forming a bow, and a large arrow, to fire at Jay and Anna as they passed by. But the gales didn't start up again, even as he pointed the arrow towards the two, who were just getting to the door. Suddenly, Mickey appeared in front of him as he fired the arrow. The arrow slowed down again as she sliced it apart. Xellos tried to move the barrier to in front of him, letting it shift, hoping that it would solidify before she started up again. Mickey's fans glowed up again, more furiously now. She crossed her arms over her chest and the world slowed down once again. The carbon slowed in it's moving, and even Xellos moved slowly. Mickey put her right foot forward, securing herself in place, and threw out her arms, unleashing all the dust in one mighty tempest blast. The crystal had begun to form when she had, but it was nothing before Mickey's power. The storm blasted through the barrier, and the carbon scattered. Xellos was struck with the fierce winds and was tossed back. The wall was destroyed even before Xellos was thrown through it. His aura and his armor together could barely protect him from having his neck broken on impact as he fell unconscious.

Mickey breath heavily, "That's what you get. Next time...No armor will protect you from death..." she muttered. She turned to Nick, who was still trying to get Sasha up. She ran over, still having a hard time breathing.

She bent down over Sasha, "I need to get back in shape..." she muttered as she picked her up. She gestured to Sasha's sword, which Nick grabbed and ran after her as they followed Jay and Anna's path out.

They winded through the hallways, "Wait a minute...How will Jay know what path to take in this maze?" Nick asked, dragging Loachsamhail behind him.

"You know Jay's skill...He can see the way I went because I kept my aura quite active. He'll follow the trail." she muttered, still a little out of breath while carrying Sasha. They found their way out to the roof, where Alice was just helping Jay and Anna into the bullhead. Alice looked back at Mickey and smiled in relief. She smiled back as Alice climbed into the cockpit, and helped Sasha up into the back. Nick climbed up and the side door closed behind them as they lifted off, flying off towards Beacon.

* * *

Team SCRT lay unconscious in the back of the bullhead. They looked like they'd been torn apart like Xellos did to Team JNAS, but they also looked like they had been at least tended to so they'd live. Jay looked at Mickey, who went about checking on them. Her blue body armor looked like the same shade of blue that he'd painted the staves of his tonfas. She had clipped off the cords on the base of the fans and slipped them into the pouches on her thighs. Nick sat next to Sasha, keeping her hand in his, ignoring the pain in his prosthetic while waiting for her to wake. Anna sat holding her knees next to Jay, still probably reeling from that encounter. He wished he knew what to do or say. Instead he just sat, waiting for them to return to Beacon. Ten minutes past before they got back to the landing pad. Beacon officials were already waiting for them with medical carts. Mickey and Team JNAS stepped from the bullhead, letting the men in uniforms go in and carefully lift the members of Team SCRT out and towards the hospital wing. Mickey stood facing Team JNAS. Jay readied himself for what he thought would be an almighty tongue lashing...But instead, Mickey's eyes filled with tears and she pulled Jay over and embraced him. When she released, she did the same for all of the rest of the team.

She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked them over, shaking her head, "Don't ever scare me like that again..." she said, trying to sound serious, but just sounding relieved. Alice climbed out of the bullhead and ran over.

Mickey and Jay turned to her, "Oh, hey Alice..." Jay said to her as she approached. She looked at Jay and pat him over the head. Jay flinched but tried not to react. Alice shook her head and turned to Mickey. The two embraced eachother for a few seconds. When they parted, they laced their fingers and gave eachother a kiss. They held eachother there for a few seconds. Jay rolled his eyes, glancing over at his team. He almost looked away again, but noticed the looks of shock that they all had, while looking at Mickey and Alice holding eachother in an intimate kiss.

"Did I not mention that Mickey was married?" Jay said to them. They all turned their shocked gazes to Jay, who was slightly taken aback. Mickey and Alice separated and stood next to eachother.

"WHAT?!" the whole team said in unison.

"Yup...I'm married...To a hot pilot chick..." Mickey said smiling, nudging Alice.

Alice shook her head, "Save it for later, Miss Badass-Huntress." she flirted back.

Jay looked at the two of them, "I didn't think it was worth mentioning...I knew about Alice...I met her two years ago, about a week after I took a placement exam to get into Beacon. It was surprising, but it wasn't like I cared...Do you guys care that my guardian's gay?" he said, turning back to his team. They all shook their heads and muttered about how it was fine, it wasn't their business, etc. He nodded, "Good. But...While I knew about Alice..." He turned back to Mickey, "When the FUCK were you a huntress?!" he shouted.

Mickey laughed nervously, and ran her hand through her hair, "You remember how I found out about your placement test two years ago? Well that's because my Beacon contact...Was Headmaster Ozpin. I graduated from Beacon Academy, and even worked as a teacher here for a few years. But I eventually just wanted to calm things down for myself. I met Alice when I got the job as a teacher...She was the pilot who took me back and forth all the time. She was willing to do me a few favors because apparently she had a crush on me. ...Remember when I said that idol was sneaked out from under the nose of a criminal syndicate? Alice here was that friend. She has quite a past herself. She took a great risk, and chose to entrust it to me. That's when I leaned about her love for me, and I kinda reciprocated those feelings, so...Here I am." Mickey explained in a hurry. Nick's head raised at the mention of an idol and a criminal syndicate...He thought he should ignore it for now though, so he decided to ask about it later.

"Those fans of hers, the Tempest Spirits, were infamous weapons here...She was called Mickey the Storm while at school here...And she was also her team leader. Eeeeeveryone cowered when Mickey kicked down the door." Alice teased.

Nick cleared his throat, "Not much has changed there then..." he muttered.

Mickey frowned at him, "Are you...scared of me?" she asked, amused. Nick looked at Sasha who looked away wide eyed.

Nick looked back at her, "Though I am curious to know how you did that...That trick. Where all of a sudden things didn't seem as chaotic and..." Mickey raised her hand to interrupt him.

"You mean my Semblance? Yeah, I can slow things down. The faster something moves, the more of an effect I can have, making anything hyper or mach speed slow to a pace that I can deal with." she explained. Nick's eyes widened. He definitely wanted to be on her good side. Mickey laughed to herself and looked them all over one more time.

The Beacon officials insisted that Team JNAS also be taken to the hospital wing to be examined and treated for injury. They removed Nick's prosthetic, and Nick gave them specific instructions on who to send it for repairs. Jay insisted he was fine, despite having fractured both his radius and his right ulna at Xellos' power, and protested vehemently to their attempts at removing his shirt. When they did finally get him to comply, it was only because they'd put up a curtain. He didn't want to have to show off the burn marks covering his chest and shoulders. Sasha had to have the bruises on her neck healed, and her and Anna's ribs were tended to after being broken. The day was almost over when the whole team had finally be tended to. They were allowed to return to their dorm at that point. They walked in silence, still shaken up after a fight with someone like Xellos. None of them really knew what to say anyway. Nick felt absent and exposed somehow, without HopeBringer. Sasha held his right hand and that made him feel a little better, but it wasn't completely helpful. Sasha was thinking about the fact that Xellos was a faunus, and wasn't sure what to think. Anna just felt torn apart by the whole event. Her dislike for Iskelle had driven her to kill her back there...And she would have had Xellos not intervened. She wasn't sure about it all though. Jay could only think about the day he'd gotten his burns. About how close he'd come to death then, and how close he'd come to it this time, and how similar the experience was. But he also thought about how he thought he'd been protecting Mickey...It turns out she really was **his** guardian. He'd always called her that because she helped him train for two years, helped him prepare, been there for him when he needed her to be. He thought he protected her because of that. That he owed it to her...But she was right when she said she could handle herself. When they got back to the dorm and opened the door, they found Mickey and Alice waiting for them. Mickey held a large basket in hand. Jay recognized the basket and smiled as Mickey pulled out the two pizzas, the sodas, and the ice cream.

Mickey smiled, "One week. As promised, here's your reward." she said. The whole team couldn't help but brighten in Mickey's presence. Nick passed around plates in his good arm, and Jay wasted no time in breaking into the vanilla ice cream and root beer, and preparing himself a root beer float. He looked around asking if anyone else wanted one. Mickey rolled her eyes, but everyone raised their hands and voiced their desire to have one as well. Jay smiled and spun the ice cream spoon in his hand with a flourished motion as he went about preparing more. Nick had the plate for pizza on his lap, which Mickey served. Alice had commenced telling stories about Mickey's huntress days, then about how Mickey had come that day to throw them a party for not getting in trouble, and then she finds out they got themselves into a dangerous situation...

"She wouldn't have that...She came running up to me wearing her old battle armor, thank goodness it was designed to stretch as it's wearer grew. I thought it was a bit of foreplay, but she was practically crying, and begging me to get her to a facility in the woods...I couldn't refuse her...Especially dressed up like that," Alice told, and smirked at Mickey, who rolled her eyes. Anna remarked upon what a cute couple she thought Mickey and Alice made. They looked at eachother and shrugged, thanking Anna for her support. Sasha nudged Nick and glanced over at Anna, who was swaying back and forth giggling to herself about boats. It didn't take the six of them long to finish the pizzas and clean out the ice cream bins. Even the soda was gone by the end of the night. Mickey and Alice said there goodnights and goodbyes before leaving with the basket. The whole team didn't bother getting changed or anything. They were all too full, and just threw their weapons off of themselves before going to bed.

The next morning, the whole team moved slowly. No one felt like doing anything, especially since they all knew what was going to happen later. And sure enough, when they had all finished preparing themselves for class, they walked out the door to find four Beacon officials waiting to take them away to a private conference room. They walked in silence down the halls until they came to their destination. The officials opened the door and directed them inside, even gesturing to specifically designated seats. Team SCRT was already present, seated on the other side of the long table. Ozpin sat at the head of the table with Goodwitch standing solemnly behind him. The twins looked down in shame, and even Rachel didn't seem to give any notice when Sasha walked in. The room was filled with silence for a few second.

Ozpin sipped his coffee, "So...I want a report from the team leaders. What happened..." he said seriously. Jay looked at his team. Nick looked back at him and gestured with his head to the table.

Sam stood up, "Everything was going well sir...We had no trouble getting in, nor did we have difficulty routing the mercenary presence." he said.

"So what went wrong?" Ozpin asked.

Sam looked over at Team JNAS and Jay stood up, "They were ready for us. They had readied a venue for our fight. And sent for back-up. Despite this, we still put them down, and were even ready to take them in...But..." Jay's voice trailed off.

Ozpin raised an eyebrow, "But?..." he said in question.

Sam stood up again, "The back-up...Right? You encountered him too, didn't you..." Sam asked looking at Jay. Jay nodded, looking down at his team.

Goodwitch and Ozpin shared a look, "And who was this newcomer?" Goodwitch asked.

"His name was Xellos..." Jay muttered.

"Really?...Well this...Xellos...He marched through us like we were nothing. He had some...Weird shadow power. I'm not sure what it was." Sam explained.

"And with this...He desecrated two of the best teams at Beacon this term? Do any of you know how he managed such a feat?" Goodwitch sounded shocked.

Jay cleared his throat, "I do..." he said silently.

Ozpin looked at Jay as Sam sat down, "Well then...Enlighten us." Ozpin said seriously.

Jay stuttered for a few seconds, "He controlled carbon, sir. He was using his Semblance to control graphite...I posit he's only able to control carbon that's touching him, or carbon that he's already effected, because it was flowing around him. This graphite was able to shift composition, to take on an unstable rigid form. He kept it safe to use with his aura. This graphene diamond retained some of the qualities of the graphite...Excited electrons, absorbed photons, but also had some of the qualities of diamond carbon. Such as the insulation capacities, the density and strength...He was able to also cherry pick these qualities, using his aura to excite the electrons and produce lightning at will, that freely traveled through the graphene diamond like static through graphite, even while the carbon was in the dense diamond form. Xellos intervened in our battle with Iskelle and Leif, allowing them to escape..." Jay looked over at Team SCRT, who all kept their heads down, "And then proceeded to bring down our team as well." Jay finished his explanation and sat down. No one spoke for a few moments. Ozpin sipped his coffee...

"And as I understand it, you managed to make it out due to the efforts of two of our staff?..." Jay flinched at Ozpin's words.

"Mickey and Alice Zephora...Yes...Alice procured a Bullhead to get us out, and Mickey saved our lives and allowed us to escape by subduing Xellos..." At that moment, the doors were violently kicked open and in walked Mickey herself, with Alice following her in.

She slammed her hands on the table, "Ozpin, these kids went into the mouth of hell yesterday when they faced Xellos. Don't you think you could let them off for a day or three? Give em a break for Cas sakes! Let them rest." she finished.

The room was filled with a shocked tension, everyone's faces but Ozpin's portrayed surprise. Ozpin sipped his coffee again, "It would seem you haven't lost a step so far, Mickey, the Storm." Ozpin remarked. More silence suffocated the room. Mickey looked at Ozpin, waiting for his decision. Finally he looked up, "Very well. You're dismissed...You may take three days to rest and recover..." Ozpin stood and walked from the room, Goodwitch following behind him. As he went, the twins looked at eachother, wondering if they should bring up what they found now...Or wait for later. But Ozpin had already left. Mickey and Goodwitch glared at eachother a moment as they passed by. The door closed behind them and Mickey let out a sigh.

"Well...That went well. So, how are you all?" she said, turning to both of the teams. No one spoke. "That bad, huh? Well don't worry. You guys will bounce back..." she said with surety.

Jay looked over at her, "So how come you never told me?...About your huntress days?" he asked.

Mickey stood up straight, "I did once... But you suffered a training injury to the head and forgot... And I thought it best that I just let it go and help you move on." she said. Jay was shocked by this, and the Dark Voice laughed, 'you fuckin dumbass,' it taunted him. Jay silenced his thoughts.

Sam looked around, then stood, "Mickey, right?...And you're Alice? Her sister?" he asked. All of Team JNAS looked up at him in shock.

"...What?" he asked them as they stared at him.

"Why do you think we're sisters?" Alice asked him.

"You two share the same last name..." he said as though it was obvious. Jay face-palmed, and everyone else just shook their heads. Sam watched them and frowned. Then his eyes widened, as did the rest of Team SCRT as they all looked over at Mickey and Alice.

"That's right," Mickey said, pulling Alice over next to her, "We're married." she said. Tia turned red and looked away, as did Chris. Rachel's mouth dropped open and Sam stuttered.

"I'm so sorry...I didn't think about it...It's perfectly ok, just so...Uh..." he trailed off.

"It's ok...We know you meant no harm with it." Alice said to stop him stuttering. He shut his mouth and sat down.

Alice rolled her eyes, "No, stand up...All of you. Come on now. Me and Mickey are taking you all out into Vale. You guys can get some food or shop or maybe even watch the preparations for the tournament that's coming up. I hear there are some amazing warriors coming in from the different kingdoms...Perhaps you could go and meet them..." Alice said. Everyone in the room felt better already. It was difficult not to, with such an opportunity. They would be glad to get some time in to just do what they wanted...One near death experience, one week of tireless preparation, and then a failed mission with another near death experience, they were long overdue for some personal time. They all stood and followed Mickey and Alice out to the airship. Alice went into the cockpit and began to talk to it as though it were her child. They sat and tried to forget though...Tried to forget whatever it was that they had found themselves in the middle of...


	6. Chapter 6 Affairs

The streets of Vale were filled with people as Jay and Nick walked in silence...Three days had passed since their encounter with Xellos, and the team had all but healed. That's why Alice and Mickey had taken them into town on their last day off. Nick's left sleeve hung at his side as they went to retrieve his arm from repairs. The arm's internal systems had been badly damaged when Xellos crushed it, but luckily, the person fixing it had a knack for technology. In fact, even though he couldn't fight, he would use his Semblance very well. The man, named Grant, had an ability to manipulate machinery that he used very well. He had a shop in downtown Vale where people could go and get their technology fixed or adapted to certain things. Although he wasn't very well known, Nick knew and trusted him completely. Jay was suspicious, but Nick didn't care. Jay was always suspicious. They had separated from the girls when they got into Vale, deciding they'd get things done a little quicker if they split into teams. Then they could relax for the remainder of their day. Jay's arms were crossed over his chest as he walked two steps behind Nick. They turned three corners before coming to the door of the shop where Grant worked. Nick opened the door and a bell rang out. The shop was filled with counters, lining the walls, with one large table in the middle of the room. The tables were covered in small machines and machine parts, with tools scattered among them. Bottles of oil were also even spaced along the counters for ease of use. The room was very well lit though, but smelled of the oils. At the back of the big counter, facing the door, was a large man with a scruffy beard. He was hunched over what appeared to be Nick's arm, which had the plating removed from the entire thing, revealing strong metal rods with unique levers, wrapped completely in intricate wiring. The wiring was unraveled and moved aside to allow access to the base rods, and he was using fine tools to place in screws along the length, bolting down the wire that led to the scroll. He didn't look up when they entered, nor did he look distracted from his work. Jay looked around the small shop with annoyance. It was warm in here...He hated the heat. Nick smiled and walked over to stand next to Grant, watching him work. Jay did the same, standing on the other side. When he finished placing the small screws along the cover of the wire, he sighed and stretched, twisting himself this way and that, groaning.

He looked up at Nick through his large round glasses and smiled back, "Nick! How are you?! I assume you came for your arm?" he shouted.

Nick shook his hand, "Hiya Grant...Long time, no see...How are those uh...Those factory pieces I got you doing?...Still in good working condition?" he asked. Grant nodded, looking over at Jay suspiciously. Jay hadn't uncrossed his arms, nor did he look back at Grant. Nick followed his glances, "Oh no, he's fine. He knows all about that...He won't tell anyone. Will you Jay?" he said, deliberately looking up at him seriously. Jay didn't speak, or even look back at him. Instead, he was looking around the room, trying to examine everything. Nick looked down at his arm, "Well yeah, I had come for my arm, but it doesn't look done yet..." he stated.

Grant shook his head, "Nope...I need about two hours. I need to reattach the motor neurons to the main rods, then I have to replace the plating...Who the fuck'd you piss off to get damage like this anyway?...I had to spend two days examining and replacing damage nerve strands...The rod was also damaged, so I had to replace that too. You left alot of work for just three days, Nick...I haven't had time to take any other jobs, and it's costin' me money...I do hope you'll be able to compensate me..." he said.

Nick nodded, "Don't worry...I appreciate your help. You're the only one who could do this, and I'm thankful you were even willing to help." Nick responded.

Grant sighed again, "Well just try not to break it again...This time, the frame will be made of some stronger stuff...Shocking, considering that it's lasted this long with the old material...What happened though?" he asked. Nick looked over at Jay, who looked back at him this time, and shook his head slightly...Just a small motion, barely visible.

Nick sighed, "I can't say. Let's just leave it at we picked a fight with the wrong guy..." he muttered. Jay rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to the room.

Grant frowned, "Well just...Two hours. I'll be finished in two hours...Just give me that time, alright?" he said. Nick nodded and walked to the door. Jay followed him and they walked from the store, the bell ringing again as the door closed behind them.

Jay caught up to Nick as they walked, "Interesting...That Grant fellow...So what are we doing for two hours..." Jay inquired. Nick thought for a moment.

"I think perhaps we should spend some time trying to find out something about our mysterious...Xellos." he said, glancing sidelong at Jay. Nick took several more turns, going away from the direction they'd come. Jay followed along, patiently waiting to see what he was doing. After a few more turns though, he recognized the path Nick was taking him. They went down a back alley way and came to a door with an old painted eye over it. It looked something like Jay's mark, but not quite the same.

"The Watcher?...You're going to ask the Watcher about a guy like Xellos?..." he looked at Nick, slightly annoyed.

Nick turned back to him in surprise, "You know the Watcher?! How the fuck is that?!" Nick demanded.

"Alice took me to see him once...After I met her, and she learned of our plans about that idol, she let me tag along to see this guy about what Roman and the rest of his gang would do next...Apparently, a neutral party, I still don't trust him...He only works for those who pay...I don't trust people like that." Jay said. Nick knocked on the door twice. After a moment, the handle turned and the door swung open. They walked in looked around. There was nothing in the room but a large round white table, at the other end, there sat a man in a black long sleeve shirt. His hair was long and brown, tied into a ponytail. He was clean shaven though, and was shuffling what looked like a deck of tarot cards. He looked at Jay and Nick in turn. They sat down in the two seats across from him, and the door swung closed behind them. Jay looked around the room, but even his Semblance could discern no tricks or explanation for the door closing. This guy's Semblance was foresight, not telekinesis...It was just a little unnerving to Jay, because this guy could see both sides of his mind...It frightened him a little. Nick kept a serious face as they sat. The Watcher had more resources and people to back him than any criminal syndicate in Vale. He also had access to more information than anyone else as well. This is what made him a valuable resource, but it worked both ways for anyone who went to him...He could read just about everything about anyone he'd ever seen. And he never forgot a single detail.

He stopped shuffling and placed the deck to the side, lacing his fingers in front of him, "What can I do for you gentlemen?" he said. His voice was light and sounded kind.

Jay and Nick exchanged a look, "We need everything you have on a man named Xellos...He can manipulate carbon...You ever hear of him?" Nick asked. He cocked his head to one side and thought. the silence dragged on for a minute.

"I believe I may have read about one such man...But for that...You'll have to pay." he said, rubbing his fingers together demonstratively. Nick reached for the pouch on his belt, but Jay placed his hand on his shoulder.

"Allow me." he muttered, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a bag that contained the money he'd brought with him for today. Nick shook his head but Jay had already pulled out the fee, remembering the price from his last visit. He placed it on the table and the Watcher took it, putting it in his pocket and looking at Jay.

"I know you...You're the ginger that was here two years ago...With the Fell-Wing Alice..." he said. Jay sighed, "Yes. That's me..." he muttered.

Nick frowned, "Fell-Wing Alice?..." he asked Jay.

"That's what she was called back when she was a mercenary pilot. She did assassinations, escorts, get-away missions for criminals...She had alot of fingers in alot of bad pies, so to speak...She is still one of the most dangerous combat pilots you'd never hear of..." he explained. Nick was surprised...For someone of his past, it was a shock to hear he'd never known about someone like her...

The Watcher cleared his throat, bringing attention back to him.

He looked at Jay, "The man named Xellos...If I recall right, he was involved with the disappearances of two Beacon students...Quite a few years back, that was...The two students were named-"

"Leif Malladus and Iskelle Femmaren." Nick interrupted.

The Watcher looked at Nick with annoyance, "Do not interrupt. I am speaking to the one who paid. Now have patience." he said. Nick looked taken aback, and glanced over at Jay.

"Yes, I knew that would happen. That's one of the reasons I chose to pay. That and you're already having to pay for your arm, so don't worry about it." he muttered, looking back at Nick. His eyes flashed gold, and showed flecks of red, changing back to hazel. Nick grimaced a little.

Jay turned back to the Watcher, who continued, "Yes, those were the names of the students. After they disappeared, there were several more disappearances. Not the work of Xellos. No, Xellos grew up with no family as I understand it. Never got to go to school...Instead he was declared a ward of the kingdom. For a time. He was granted clemency for a couple...Sticky situations, and learned on his own for years before...Vanishing. After he vanished, it doesn't appear there was ever even a search for him. Nothing further was in the file. Not a birthday nor birth certificate. Not anything about parents or siblings. Not anything about so much as height or weight. Why they granted him clemency as well is also un-stated. He gained advantages from seemingly no where, and to no where he returned when he was done with them. This would be the first sighting of him in years..." he finished. Jay didn't bother asking how he knew they'd seen him.

"But wait...Does that mean that they suspected him of being involved?...Why? Without any citings, they'd have no reason to suspect him of even being alive anymore...Why would there be any record of him being involved?...Especially if there's so little information about him, how would they have been able to identify it as Xellos?..." Jay inquired.

The Watcher shook his head, "The police wouldn't know...The file on their disappearances just mention the possible involvement of one Xellos. Not even a last name...It was written in the corner of the file, on the back of the form, in ornate handwriting. I doubt anyone would ever have paid attention to it. And the officer who filled out the form on their disappearance doesn't remember writing it. Not that it's not obvious it wasn't him, what with the huge difference in handwriting...But that's what I know. That's what I read from the files. Sorry to disappoint." he finished. Jay frowned and looked at Nick.

Nick looked back at the Watcher, "Thanks..." he muttered as they got up and left. The Watcher didn't move as they left, and the door closed behind them as it did when they walked in. Jay looked at Nick and shuddered.

"That guy creeps me out..." he said.

Nick laughed, "That guy?... Really?...Odd for a guy like you, Jay."

* * *

Sasha and Anna sat across from eachother at the small table, neither spoke very much. Sasha had gotten herself a coffee, even though she'd never really been one for the stuff...It tended to make her hyper and more prone to violence. But she thought she'd be fine with one small cup this afternoon. Anna had also gotten coffee, and they were sitting in silence. Sasha cleared her throat, hoping to end the pressing quiet before she choked and snapped on whatever happened to be closest to her...

"So...I've been noticing you're becoming particularly close with Jay...All that...Tandem training and such...How'd you guys handle the mission?..." she asked, trying to find a subject that she hoped would catch Anna's interest.

Anna looked up from her coffee, "W-what?...What do you mean?...We were just training so we could have an even fight with the Dragoon Twins...The mission went well...Why do you ask?" she stuttered.

Sasha smirked, becoming more entertained, and looking off absently, "Oh, no reason...Just...You know...You and Jay...All alone together..." she glanced at Anna, whose face was beginning to turn red, "It's actually quite frequent, thinking back...In the Forever Fall...You two ran off into the forest together...And again after the fight me and Jay had, you two were alone while you were dressing...And again, when I was in the hospital, you guys were alone together all night..."

"S-stop! I don't like the implications of this conversation!" Anna interrupted, stammering, her face now completely red along with her ears. Her faunus ears twitched agitatedly. She sipped shakily at her coffee, "I don't know what you think happened, but it didn't. We were just talking...T-there's nothing...Going on between us..." she said. For some reason, Anna felt like she had to explain herself, although she'd done nothing wrong. Sasha looked at Anna seriously for a second, staring her down. Anna's eyes widened as she looked at Sasha's.

After a few seconds of awkward staring, Sasha straightened herself in her chair and sipped her coffee, "Perhaps not...But I think you want there to be..." she said simply, with her eyes closed in consideration.

Anna stuttered for a few seconds again, "W-what?...I...No I don't...W-we're teammates...That's all. And I'm happy with that." she said, doing her best to keep a straight face.

Sasha sipped her coffee again, "Lies." she said simply, closing her eyes in consideration once more.

"...What?" Anna asked.

Sasha opened her eyes and took a deep breath, "You. Are. A. Liar. And Jay is an idiot." she said.

Anna frowned, "That's not true and you know it...He has better grades then all of us...And you've seen first hand what he can do in battle..." she said, her voice less shaky.

Sasha opened her eyes after having closed them and sipped her coffee even more, "You're pretty quick to defend him...And you seem to have alot of confidence in his abilities...It's almost as if..." Sasha trailed off.

"As if what?...As if I like him?...As if I want to be more than friends? Sasha, I'm happy with the way things are. I don't want to change it..." she said, a little annoyed.

Sasha smirked and leaned forward on the table, sipping her coffee, "Interestingly enough, Jay was the one who showed me how to do that..." she said seriously.

Anna frowned again, "How to do what?..." she asked tentatively.

Sasha leaned forward on the table, finishing her cup of coffee, "How to lead someone to reveal their true intentions...You see, I only prompted you. I hinted towards something, and your brain filled in the blanks, based not on what I was saying, but on what you would have said...It's supposed to reveal where you actually wanted the conversation to go. And you...You just gave away what you really thought about this..." Sasha said, staring into Anna's eyes again.

Anna's face turned even more red, an admirable feat, considering her face was already somewhere near cherry red.

She stuttered for a few seconds, "W-when did he show you that?!" she said.

"During our suspension after we crippled eachother...We were talking to eachother about whether or not I was over my disdain for him...He used that trick to get me to type that I still kinda wanted to beat his face in. He actually told me quite alot about psychology. Interesting stuff. We're over the hatred now just so you know." she explained

. Anna scoffed, "Well... That trick doesn't prove anything...I'm happy with the-"

"Ok, stop. Who are you trying to convince here, because it certainly isn't me...If you like him, you should tell him." Sasha prodded.

Anna shook her head, "I don't though...We're just teammates." she said, glancing this way and that.

"You know, you keep repeating that. Yes, you're just teammates...At present...But you haven't said that you don't like him. And you've not said anything in reference to what you would like for the future...You've been using present tense." Sasha said, clearly trying to imitate Jay's level tone and matter-of-fact voice pattern.

Anna rolled her eyes, "Don't try to analyze me...It doesn't matter this way or that. Whether I like him or not." Anna said calmly.

Sasha frowned, "Hm...I know what you mean...Even if you tried to tell him...He's so fuckin' oblivious, you could tell him and he'd probably begin explaining how love works in the brain..." Sasha said, shaking her head.

Anna's face turned a brilliant shade of red, "D-did you say love?..." she stuttered in a high pitched voice.

Sasha looked over at her, her eyes wide with surprise, "I did...Anna...Do you...Lo-"

"Don't say it!" Anna interrupted quickly.

Sasha raised her hands in submission, "Ok, ok..." she conceded. Anna looked slightly relieved. Sasha cleared her throat, "I ship it." she muttered quickly.

Anna looked up at her, "What?"

"What?" they said in quick succession.

* * *

Jay pondered the information that the Watcher had given them...He wasn't eating, even though it was his suggestion that they go for lunch. Nick had no problem eating, even with people staring at his limp sleeve.

Nick looked up at Jay, "Dude...Eat. What's got you so...Fuckin' contemplative." he asked.

Jay looked up, "That's a big word, Nick...You sure you know what it means?" he asked facetiously. Nick frowned and Jay smirked, going back to his consideration. Nick shook his head finished his plate. Jay decided to eat, and Nick sat waiting. But he didn't wait long...Jay quickly downed the whole plate. Nick's eyes were wide with surprise when he finished.

"You look surprised. Come now, what did you expect..."

He stated, "You're paying." he said as he stood, walking to the door. Nick pulled his wallet out, glaring at Jay as he walked away. When Nick joined Jay, they walked from the restaurant. It was about the time that Grant had told them to return to the workshop for Nick's arm, so they decided to head in that direction...Nick glanced over at Jay, wanting to get back at him at least a little bit for making him pay for the restaurant. He thought as they turned left on the corner about what he could say...Then he thought of something...

He cleared his throat, "Hey Jay...What do you think of Anna?..." he asked casually. Jay looked over at him, thinking about the question.

"She's a great warrior. Lot of potential, lot of options." he muttered.

Nick frowned, "Not as a teammate or fighter...As a person..." he said.

Jay frowned, "Why do you ask?" he inquired.

Nick smirked, "Because I know what you really think about her..." he said.

Jay rolled his eyes, "Interesting...Then again, it's obvious, is it not...I'm surprised you or Sasha don't feel the same..." he said.

Nick looked over at Jay, "What?! No...Why would I?" he asked, slightly surprised.

Jay looked at him, appearing slightly annoyed, "What do you mean, why?! I wouldn't want to offend her, but to be honest, we all **should **be worried about her." he said to Nick clenching his fists.

Nick's eyes raised in question, "Worried?...What?..." Nick was taken aback.

Jay rolled his eyes, "Really?...Fool. It worries me how little she eats...She pushes herself to breaking point like the rest of us, but eats far too little...It will have negative health repercussions, if it hasn't already. Our encounter with Xellos is what really shows there's something to worry about. Her attack should have been able to pierce that armor. That axe is sharp enough to slice diamond, I've seen it's capacity with my own eyes. Then when he countered...She coughed up blood...It's worrisome. She could get herself killed in an academy like Beacon if she doesn't care for her health." he said slightly solemnly. Nick was astounded. He looked at Jay with shock. Jay looked over at him after a few seconds, "...What?" he asked.

Nick shook his head, "It's just...You're...How can you be so smart...And yet so fuckin' stupid..." he muttered.

Jay frowned, "What do you mean by that?" he asked, annoyed.

Nick chuckled, "Not only do you really like her, but you're oblivious as fuck about it..." he said, laughing more and more.

Jay was slightly bewildered, "Well I suppose so...She's a good teammate. A strong ally." he responded.

Nick shook his head again, "No you stupid fuck...How can I get you to comprehend...I don't mean you like her as a friend or teammate...You like her as a woman. As **more** than a friend..." he said, moving his hand in circles in front of him, motioning for Jay to catch on.

Jay frowned for a moment, then his eyes widened and his face turned bright red as he looked quickly back at Nick, "Wha-...WHAT?!..." he said in shock. "N-no I...I mean I suppose she's...But I don't...I swear to Castiel I'll gut you like a pig if you so much as mutter a word about this." he said angrily, his face still bright red. Nick chuckled again, satisfied with this revenge. And now he had something to hang over Jay's head in the future...

They were silent for the rest of the walk to Grant's workshop. When they entered, it seemed smell worse of oil than it had before. Grant was framing the arm together when they entered, and appeared to be deep in concentration. Nick walked over to stand behind Grant, and Jay stood by the door, just waiting to get out of here. Grant didn't look up as he finished placing the frame. When he was done, he left a few plates off, to access underneath the plating.

He looked up at Nick, "You've got some great timing. Come to the back then, and we'll get this over with..." he said, standing and picking up the arm, leading Nick through the door at the back wall. Jay rolled his eyes and began walking around the room, analyzing the small parts and pieces. The oil was everywhere, and it was all Jay could do to not let it touch him. Suddenly from the back, there was a loud clang, and Nick yelled out. Jay immediately turned and walked to the door, and doing his best to imitate Mickey, slammed his the door off it's hinges with a kick, and ran back to find Nick, laying on what Jay wagered to be Grant's bed, with his prosthetic arm on a counter next to him. Nick's face was contorted in pain, and Grant leaned over the counter, fiddling with the arm using fine instruments. He was clicking the arm onto Nick's body. Jay looked over the scene, piecing what happened together in his head. "It's alright. I'm attaching the core...Inside his shoulder there's a piece that accepts the shaft like a bone onto his skeleton. It can really pinch to attach these pieces. The nerves will come next, and that won't be any better, I'm afraid. His nervous system will then have to be put through routine response checks to make sure the artificial nerves are working properly. Basically, I'll have to simulate the systems natural signals...Motor signals...Pain signals...Sensory signals. I have to make sure it'll work properly..." he explained as he went about clipping the tiny clusters onto the arm.

Jay rolled his eyes, "You don't need to explain anything to me. I know what you're doing..." he responded, still slightly annoyed by his environment. Nick gasped and gritted his teeth, clenching his other fist and curling his feet, trying his best to stay still. Grant pulled a bean bag off of the counter and put it in Nick's mouth. Jay walked out of the room, returning to his idle observation. There was only silence, interrupted by occasional loud sounds from the other room as Nick went through the painful process to get his arm attached. Jay tried to keep himself entertained, but after about a half an hour, he'd grown bored of looking around. He sat down in Grant's seat, and rolled this way and that, waiting patiently. This continued for nearly an hour before the door opened behind him. Jay turned and stood. Nick grinned ear to ear, raising his arm in triumph, carefully opening his fingers, glad to have his Hopebringer back. The phantom pains and sensations would bother him no more now that he had it back. He chuckled, happily clicking the canisters in his wrist back and forth between the elemental dust.

Grant explained that he'd added more room in the forearm to allow larger canisters, and lighter movement. He explained that he had put extra plating on the hatch on his forearm, and had repaired the clips that held the canisters in place. Finally, he informed Nick that he had fixed a bug in the programming of the scroll that was messing with some of the timed applications. Nick pulled out his wallet again and paid his old friend, adding on some interest for his lost work.

After that, Nick and Grant shook hands, "Until next time," Nick said. They walked from the store, and Jay breathed deeply.

"By Cas. The smell of that place...Ugh." he said.

Nick shook his head, "Not that it matters..." he responded. Jay and Nick began to walk back towards the point where they decided they'd meet up with Sasha and Anna. Nick looked over at Jay as they walked.

"I've got something I want to ask you about..." he said to Jay.

Jay didn't look over at him, "You'd like to know about that idol Mickey mentioned..." he said flatly. Nick said nothing, just keeping his eyes on Jay. Jay sighed, "Ok, look...When Alice met Mickey, she liked her right away. The thing is that Mickey was working for Beacon." he started.

Nick nodded, "Ok..." he said, motioning for Jay to continue.

"Alice worked for criminal organization that at the time had hired her to get ahold of that statue." he continued.

"And Alice...What, turned on them when the job was done?" Nick asked.

Jay shook his head, "They were planning something big...Mickey pleaded with Alice to let her help her, but Alice refused. She didn't want to hurt Mickey or burden her, so she tried to keep it a secret...She got the idol just as she was ordered, and took it to them. But...Then she found out that they had planned to use the idol for an attack on Beacon." Nick's eyes raised in surprised questioning.

Jay shrugged, "They apparently had problems with the idea of training kids, who willingly went to Beacon to learn, to kill creatures of Grimm and save the lives of everyone around them. So they wanted to send a message. But when Alice found out...She was scared that they'd hurt Mickey. So she stole the idol back...And took it to Mickey, begging her to help...Mickey immediately did so, basically taking down the entire syndicate with the information Alice gave her. Mickey quit her job at Beacon to help Alice get clean of that work. Set her up and such...Then settled down with her in a dust shop in downtown Vale...About that time, a criminal named Roman Torchwick started gathering dust and hunting down these idols. The first one, well you know what happened to that. Then he found out from the Watcher that an older organization had actually gotten their hands on one such idol...He hunted down the old members and tortured them to find out what had happened. They pointed him to Mickey though, not Alice. Mickey had been the one to take them down, and they knew nothing about Alice's betrayal...Roman tried to take it...But that was when I blew into town...I fought him off...Only recently did I find out that Mickey could have done so herself...After my entrance exam, we decided to turn the statue over to Beacon. It's been in Ozpin's care ever since." Jay explained as they turned the corner towards uptown Vale. Nick was silent...He considered this story for a moment...He thought back to that day, when he destroyed the idol...

"How did you fight Roman off?" he asked.

Jay shook his head, "Caught him off guard. He saw me as small and helpless compared to himself. He put himself right where I wanted him to be, completely by accident. Who knows what would have happened had we truly faced off..." he said, glancing over at Nick. Nick wasn't sure what to think about this...He thought that the idol would most likely be safe in Beacon custody...And then there was Mickey...Who also would crush anyone who attempted to take it...He chuckled to himself.

Jay looked over at him, raising an eyebrow, "Something funny?" he asked.

Nick shook his head, rubbing at his forehead, "Just that...Last time I learned about one of those idols, I got this arm because of it...Now, I lose my arm again...And no sooner do I get it back, do I learn of another idol...Apparently just knowing about those things is terrible luck for me." he said lightly.

Jay smiled a little, "Hmph...I suppose so." he said, as they continued towards the meeting point.

* * *

Anna and Sasha approached the bench near the airfield where Jay and Nick sat waiting for them, and stood before them. Jay sat with his arms crossed and his eyes closed, and Nick sat leaning his head on his hand, supported on his knee, continuing to fiddle with his dust canisters in the left wrist.

Jay looked, glancing between the girls, and Nick sat up straight, "Alice will be here any minute..." Nick said.

Anna and Sasha exchanged a glance, "Actually, you two go back...Me and Anna have something we'd like to do in town before we join you..." Sasha spoke up.

Jay frowned, "What's so important?" he pestered.

"Nothing important. Just something we want to do..." Sasha said. Jay looked over at Anna, who avoided his gaze. Alice's bullhead was just coming in and landing a ways away from them. Jay and Nick stood and Jay immediately walked towards the ship, where Alice was waving at them through the window on the cockpit.

"As you like..." he muttered to them as he went. Sasha turned towards Nick, who shook his head, not yet moving towards the ship.

"What's his problem today?" Sasha asked Nick.

Nick shrugged, "Not completely sure...He may just be a little upset about our visit to the Watcher."

"The what?" Anna spoke up at last.

Nick looked at her, "The Watcher...An underground source...He's got more information than pretty much anyone in the kingdom...But Jay doesn't like him much...Gives him the creeps apparently." Nick explained.

Sasha smirked and looked after him, "Interesting. I'll keep that in mind...So did you get any new information on Xellos then?" she asked. Nick shook his head, "Only that he barely exists at all, and can pretty much get whatever the fuck he wants before ducking back out of existence. No family, no record of him even being born..." he said.

Jay turned back to Nick after talking to Alice for a minute and shouted back to Nick, "Get the lead out, we've got somewhere to be."

Nick sighed and turned to the girls, "Ladies...I'll see you whenever you finish whatever it is..." he said before running over to the bullhead. Sasha and Anna waved them off as the ship rose and flew off towards Beacon.

Sasha turned back to Anna, "Let's get going..." she said. Anna nodded and they started back towards the city. Anna was slightly nervous about what they were about to do.

She looked at Sasha every now and then, until Sasha noticed and looked at Anna, "What's wrong?" she demanded.

Anna stuttered for a minute, "What if we're not allowed to keep it?" she asked.

Sasha rolled her eyes, "I checked Jay's handbook...It's allowed. We just have to take good care of it, and keep it in the dorm room. So we'll make sure to get something that will be easy to follow those parameters with." Sasha said. Anna sighed a little, trying to reassure herself. They stopped and turned, facing their destination. Anna turned to Sasha again, looking a little nervous.

Sasha smiled brightly, "Don't worry Anna. A pet is a wonderful idea on your part. It will definitely help the team feel better..." she patted Anna on the back. Anna breathed deeply for a minute. "And besides...I'm sure Jay would also say it was a good idea..." Sasha added, glancing at Anna out of the corner of her eyes and taking note of her reaction. Anna looked more confident about the decision now, and they walked into the pet store together. The room smelled of fur and the air was alive with cheeping and clicking and rushing water. Anna and Sasha began to walk around the room, looking through the glasses at the animals that they would be allowed to select. Sasha looked over at the cats, thinking that perhaps Anna would feel a bit more connected to one of them...But she shook the thought from her head...It sounded a little racist... She walked around for a minute or two more before looking over at Anna. She was standing wide eyed in front of one of the glass cages. Sasha raised an eyebrow and walked over to see what she was so enamored with. "What're you-..." Sasha began as she walked up next to Anna. She looked into the glass container and saw the small tortoise Anna was staring at. The cage had no name tag on it. Anna looked at the creature, and the tortoise appeared to stare back with curiosity. Sasha looked back and forth between them before waving her arms and calling the clerk over. He walked over and looked back and forth between Anna and the tortoise as well, before Sasha waved him back and joined him at the counter. Anna continued watching the tortoise, who had begun to swim around in the water, leaving the rock he was standing on. Anna walked over to the counter and snatched the papers from Sasha and began signing away for the tortoise, quickly producing the fee. Sasha paid for a large and new container to hold him in and for the accessories and food. The clerk threw in a small container to take him back to their dorm in that would keep him warm and comfortable.

Anna carried him happily from the store, smiling ear to ear, cat ears twitching with joy. Sasha chuckled and shook her head, carrying all the rest of the stuff with ease, using her Semblance. When they reached the airfield, Anna carefully placed the container for the team's new pet on the bench next to her and pulled out her scroll, contacting Alice for their transport. Sasha kept on her feet while Anna sat there, her feet swinging beneath her.

"So what are you gonna name him?" Sasha asked out of idle curiosity.

Anna looked over at the container, "I'm still deciding...What do you think?" she asked Sasha.

Sasha shrugged, still with the things on her shoulders, "I'm not sure...And besides, you signed the papers, you adopted him...He's yours to name." she said. Anna looked off idly in consideration. Minutes passed, near an hour as they waited, before Alice landed the bullhead near them. Anna picked up the container and Alice walked towards them.

She looked over at Sasha's rather intimidating haul, "Y-you need help with that?" she asked tentatively.

Sasha shook her head, smiling, "Thanks but no thanks. I can handle it." she said.

She began to place the things carefully into the back of the bullhead while Alice turned to Anna, "You look happy...What'cha got in the container?" she asked.

Anna smiled and giggled, "We went and adopted a pet." she said happily.

Alice's eyes raised in surprise, "Really?...Why?" she asked, unsure of what to say.

Anna shrugged, "I just thought it would help cheer everyone up...So far, we've brushed against death at least twice in a month...Not to mention anything in our pasts...I just think that we're stressed, and it would be good to focus on something to get our heads together." she explained.

Alice smiled and nodded, "Well thought." she said, almost proudly.

"Thanks for taking us back and forth, Alice..." Sasha said, walking over to join them.

Alice shook her head, "No problem. Any friend to Jay is a friend to me. And you guys are more than his friends...You're his teammates. You're as good as family now. You should remember that. And I'm happy to do whatever for family..." she said, gesturing to the bullhead for them. Anna climbed in placing the container on the floor of the back next to her. Sasha sat down on her other side, nudging her playfully as the bullhead took off and they flew back to Beacon.

* * *

Alice waved as she took off, already on her way back after receiving Anna and Sasha's call.

"Great timing, those two..." Nick muttered as he waved back. Jay said nothing and began to walk back to Beacon. Nick sighed and walked after him, speeding up to catch him, then matching his pace.

"What's up with you today...You're more of an asshole than usual. I didn't think it'd piss you off to talk about Anna earlier..." he said.

Jay rolled his eyes, "Your false accusations about my viewpoints on our teammate has no bearing to me. I'm still thinking about..." he trailed off, still in thought.

"About that information about Xellos? Or lack there of?" Nick finished for him.

Jay shrugged, "I don't get it. That facility...His whole absence...How did he gain all his advantages, being a faunus. And how did he just vanish?...And what was he doing...It's the facility that bothers me most, I think." he furrowed his brow, muttering to himself further.

"That's what's bothering you so bad?...Not the faunus who came a few steps from killing us? Dude, had Mickey not intervened, we'd all be six feet under. And I doubt our bodies would have even been found. That's not what bothers you?" Nick demanded. Jay shook his head.

"Ok...Then...Tell me what about that facility was so important?" Nick asked. They were walking down one of the right paths now, and approaching the entrance to the dorm wing.

Jay opened the door, "Well, it's- oof!" Jay began, only to be interrupted when Chris and Tia slammed into them as they dashed out. Jay sat up and looked at Tia, who had ran into him, and Chris stared at Nick.

"Oh! There you are! How lucky for us." the twins said together, smiling brightly as though nothing had happened.

"Watch your step next time guys." Nick said simply. Jay frowned and stood along with Nick and the twins.

"Well either way, sorry for running into you...Where's Anna and Sasha?" they said in unison.

Jay looked at Nick, "Unsure...They had something important to do in town and won't return until Alice brings them back. Could be a while." Jay said.

The twins glanced at eachother, then back at Jay and Nick, "Ok then, I guess they'll be late. Let's go!" they said again.

Chris grabbed Nick by his prosthetic arm and Tia grabbed Jay, who immediately recoiled, "Whoa, hey, don't touch me." he said, slightly annoyed. Tia rolled her eyes and gestured for him to follow. Jay scoffed and jogged after them with Nick as they began to run through the halls.

After a few minutes of running, shoving students aside, and Jay yelling back apologies, the four of them came to one of the conference rooms on the other side of the building. Tia and Chris opened the door and walked to their seats. Jay and Nick came in and looked around. Headmaster Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch took two chairs at the other side of the table, with Tia and Chris sitting next to them. Sam and Rachel sat further away from Ozpin, next to the twins. Sitting next to Ms. Goodwitch was Mickey. She wore her armor, which looked a bit more blue in this light. It appeared to be the same blue that covered the staff bodies on Jay's tonfas. Jay had always loved that color. It was the pretty much the bluest blue he'd ever found. Jay and Nick looked at eachother, and went over to sit next to Mickey, Jay sitting next to his guardian. Both of them glanced around the room a little confused.

Professor Ozpin glanced at Jay and Nick, "Where are your teammates?" he asked casually.

"Busy in town..." Nick muttered simply.

Ozpin sighed and looked back to the twins, "Well then you two will have to fill them in later. Tia and Christopher...If you would be so kind." he said. Jay raised an eyebrow and looked over at them, along with everyone else in the room.

Tia spoke up, without her brother, "Ok. Jay and Nick, we're here to report about what we found at that facility. We discovered something...Distressing." she said. Jay and Nick frowned and glanced at eachother.

"That's right. After successfully infiltrating the facility under our teammates cover, we wandered a bit, eventually finding our way to an elevator at about the center of the facility. When we went down this elevator..." Chris trailed off.

Tia picked up for him, "What we found at the bottom was Grimm. Lots of them. They were separated by race though...There was a large platform off to the side that they could use to transport Grimm down into the cages." she said.

"Cages?" Jay asked. Both of the twins nodded.

"They were caged up...There were two empty cages, one Ursa Major, one Deathstalker. But the cages opened as you approached them. There was probably a control panel to handle that, but we didn't look for it. We were too occupied with the Grimm." Chris explained, before switching back to Tia.

"Mhm, when they were released, and attacked...They didn't attack like normal. They weren't normal Grimm. They fought together...Like an army..."

"A well oiled machine."

"A total conquering force,"

"With both tact and teamwork..." they said in alternation. Everyone looked back and forth between eachother.

Mickey shook her head, "Hold on a second...How does that work?...Grimm can't be trained...Believe me, I know." she said. Jay smirked and Nick glanced over at her a little surprised and wide eyed.

The twins looked at eachother again, "Well, they had some...Chips in their heads. I don't know, but when we smashed the skulls of one of the Ursa Major, there looked like something had been embedded below it...But that's not all. They also...Appeared to have strange bone density. Their attacks were...Well it wasn't easy to break the bone..." Tia explained.

"So they were...Enhanced somehow?" Sam asked.

The twins nodded again, "They were not something to mess with...We barely got out." Chris went on.

"How'd you manage that?" Nick asked.

"Well the Grimm...They only acted as a unit...Within their respective species...When we released the Deathstalkers...They attacked the Ursa Major. Grimm don't attack eachother, ever...But they didn't even seem to register what their opponents were...Only attacking and killing." Tia answered.

Jay nodded, "So that's what that facility was for...And the Grimm are now?..." he trailed off, hoping for an answer.

The twins looked at eachother, "Dead. We blew up the elevator...Probably brought down tons of earth and rock on their heads with the entire bag of charges..." they said together.

Nick rolled his eyes, "That explains that blast we felt..." he muttered.

"And that also makes that facility completely useless to them now...So what do we do next..." Jay asked.

Nick turned to address those present, "We were just in town...Went to an old source. Someone who would know more about this...Xellos, than anyone else we can find. Problem is, Xellos practically doesn't exist. No record, no family, no...Anything. We don't know where to look...Which means we pretty much can't do anything but wait for him to show his face again." Nick explained. Everyone went silent.

Professor Ozpin looked up, "Well then...We'll prepare ourselves. It would seem that there's no longer anyway we can do. As far as I can tell, at this point Xellos is sure to show himself again. Until then, we must prepare." he muttered. Mickey nodded and stood.

"Damn right. Which is why I will be taking over your training until the next time he's out in the open." the room went silent again. Everyone was processing what Mickey had just said. All of them looked slowly towards her, dreading the implication of... Mickey grinned, "That's right kids. You're mine now." she said. The silence was suffocating.

Suddenly there were footsteps outside the door, which slammed open, Anna and Sasha standing breathless before them, "WHAT'D WE MISS?!" Sasha shouted. Everyone looked back at her, every eye filled with fear...Anna and Sasha glanced at eachother, feeling the tension and becoming nervous. Mickey chuckled again.

"Oh gods..." Sasha muttered.

* * *

After Ozpin had excused the present students, Nick and Jay immediately walked out, taking Anna and Sasha with them back to the dorm. Jay and Nick spent the time on the way back to explain everything that had just happened, including their information about the facility.

Sasha was shuddering the whole walk, and when they finished, she grabbed onto Nick's arm like a frightened kitten, "But Mickey...Please...Oh gods, please tell me we're not training with her..." she muttered. Nick glanced at Jay, who cleared his throat, looking away.

Nick put his arm around her, "She's not going to hurt you or anything, Sasha...Don't worry..." he said, trying his best to sound sure.

She groaned, "Yes she will...She will...She never got revenge for when I put Jay in a wheelchair and now she's gonna put me in a wheelchair and blame it on the training and-" Sasha was interrupted from her quick speaking by Jay's laughter.

He laughed more and glanced back at her, "Mickey isn't like that, Sasha...She's not gonna get revenge...She doesn't care about that anymore. I broke your jaw, remember? And furthermore, I told her about our little glancing encounter with Cardin. After she heard about how you defended me, she said she's forgiven the whole thing. She's not going to put you in a wheelchair, she's not going to hurt you or anything...Well she may hurt you, but it won't be malicious intent. It'll be training...Ok? Cease your worrying." he said simply, still chuckling a little. Sasha put her arm around Nick and held tight, with an annoyed expression.

They got back to the dorm and Jay reached out with his scroll to unlock the door, "Wait wait wait!" Anna said, trotting to the front of the group. She looked bubbly and excited as she stood in front of the dorm room, "Guys, me and Sasha kinda went and got something while we were in town." she started. Nick and Jay exchanged glances. "Before you say something, Jay: it's not against the rules, we checked. And before **you** say something, Nick: don't worry, we can take all take care of it, no problem." she finished, pulling her scroll out, unlocking the door. She opened the door and and lead the team into the room, standing aside to reveal the glass tank on the small table under the windowsill. Sasha released Nick and went to stand by Anna next to the tank. Jay and Nick glanced at eachother and walked over to the tank. Nick crouched and looked at the tortoise.

"Ok...I've got to admit...I... Did not expect this." he muttered. Jay stood straight, staring at the thing, unsure of what to do about it. He walked his mind, rereading the handbook. And she was right. It was most certainly not against the rules. He saw the tortoise look over at him and his eyes widened.

The room remained silent while Nick and Jay took this in. The tortoise climbed off of the rock and swam over to the side closest to Jay, continuing to look up at him. Jay didn't move.

"Aw, he likes you Jay..." Anna spoke up in an excited voice.

Sasha turned and whispered to Anna playfully, "He's not the only one around here..." Anna turned red and pushed at Sasha. But Jay didn't appear to hear them though, and remained fixated on the tortoise.

"So what's his name?" Nick asked.

Sasha looked over at Anna, "Ask her. She adopted him, she named him." she said in response.

Anna giggled excitedly, "I think his name should be Mr. Gump..." she said.

Nick raised an eyebrow, "Interesting...Sounds good to me." he said. Sasha nodded in agreement.

"What do you think, Jay?..." Anna said out-loud. Jay must not have heard, because he didn't take his eyes off of the tortoise. He had a serious expression on his face and stared wide-eyed at Mr. Gump.

Anna glanced at Sasha, "Jay?..." she said again.

Nick turned to Jay and began to reach towards him, but Anna grabbed his hand and walked over to him, "Jay?" she said again, putting her hand on his shoulder.

He snapped around suddenly, "Oh...Uh...What?" he asked a little out of it.

Anna removed her hand when he jolted around and looked at him, still smiling, "His name is Mr. Gump...What do you think?" she said, sounding almost anxious. Jay compose himself and pushed his glasses up on his nose.

"Uh...Perfect. It's a good name." he said, still not sounding completely there. Anna smiled brighter at this. Sasha tapped Nick's shoulder slyly and giggled a little, gesturing towards Jay and Anna.

Jay noticed this however and cleared his throat, "Y-yes well...Anna, if I could speak to you alone, I'd like to address your diet...If it's not a sensitive subject." he said.

Anna looked away, her smile fading, "Oh... Uh...N-no, that's ok...I'm ok talking about that..." she said. Jay nodded and turned, leading her from the room. When the door closed behind them, Sasha shook Nick's shoulder and he looked back at her. She bounced up and down, grinning and giggling.

"Anna admitted that she liked Jay...She did, and now I ship them..." she said, trying to be silent.

Nick raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Jay more or less admitted it as well...But fuck, was he just...He didn't say it outright. He kept going in circles, saying that he was worried about her health...He likes her too, I can tell...He's trying to avoid it though." he explained.

Sasha smirked, "Well that ain't gonna work..." she said confidently.

"Nope...Not forever." Nick responded.

**(AN sorry about forgetting the last two updates, its been a little hectic, with getting ready for my next semester of school, anyway, the next two parts of the story, and if you have any ideas or suggestions, as well as any ways to improve the story, please leave a review, thank yoou)**


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